


~::A Kingdom Hearts Story (The Keyblade War)::~

by KeyBearer



Series: A Kingdom Hearts Story [3]
Category: Kingdom Hearts
Genre: Disney Movies, Disney Multiverse, Disney References, F/M, Gen, M/M, Post-Kingdom Hearts III, Spoilers - Kingdom Hearts Birth By Sleep, Spoilers - Kingdom Hearts Dream Drop Distance, Square Enix - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-03-14
Updated: 2016-07-21
Packaged: 2018-03-17 19:11:08
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 26
Words: 251,203
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3540788
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/KeyBearer/pseuds/KeyBearer
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Aseles’ story progresses after the reconnection of her past memories and the aftermath of Organization XIII’s downfall.</p><p>A new threat of keyblade wielders, called the Substitutions, are running amok on the worlds, and their main goal is unclear until a certain name arrives in the quarrel: Xehanort. Once more, Sora, Donald, Goofy and Aseles gang up to stop the evil forces, all the while relearning the gruesome aftermath of the Keyblade War that happened ten years before, and what fates befell the Keyblade Masters of the time. </p><p>As their journey progresses, Aseles comes to grips that perhaps everything she knew is not the only truth; her friendships will be tested, her sense of alliance is under attack, and her sense of purpose deepens and darkens the further she digs into her memories, and into the reality of what happened with Master Terra. In the wake of her obstacles, a strange male of the name Dimitri appears from the shadows, and Aseles realizes that he might be the key to unlocking her true self, but with a heavy price.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Prelude/Caged

**Author's Note:**

> I do not own Kingdom Hearts or Disney, but I do own the creation of the original characters in here (I have also gotten permission from others to use their characters respectfully for this story as well). I also own the creation and plot for this story (BECAUSE I WAS TOO DARN IMPATIENT FOR KINGDOM HEARTS 3 TO COME OUT ALREADY, so I made my own). I try to stay canon as possible.
> 
> The third installment of my KH series, I have changed several things around from my previous posting of it years ago back in Quizilla. Thank you for taking the time to read these notes.
> 
> Thanks so much for reading guys, I really appreciate it! I'm grateful for you having stuck with me thus far, but I'm pleased to say I have more in store! Excuse the typos for this one, I will fix them later in the day.

_“Sometimes, no matter how much faith we have, we lose people. But you never forget them. And sometimes, it's those memories that give us the faith to go on.”-Unknown_

_Within the boundaries, past the limits of the soul,_

_The memories, the links begin to take shape as a whole,_

_Where the deepest wishes and bonds co-create_

_Into something real, solid, much like a heart rate._

_It drums and pounds with such great force,_

_It is there it begins to take its course_

_Into something unimaginable to the mind,_

_Where the memories are being intertwined._

*************************

_“By the order of the Hollow Bastion Committee and King Mickey, Riku and Aseles are hereby accused of joining forces with Maleficent, as well as played a part in the activities of Organization XIII. Until we have reached a verdict, you shall hereby be held in custody of Radiant Garden.”_

The sky seemed gloomier than Aseles had remembered it. It was quiet, almost paused as the thuds of her shoes emitted from beneath her firm body. The farther she walked through Radiant Garden, the more she felt enclosed, trapped, born into an invisible chest she didn’t have the key to. As if something other than the binds on her wrists were not the only thing preventing her from escaping. No, some other presence was here, she could feel it in the sky, in her hair, on her skin.

Down the Bailey she was led, and as subtle as she tried to, she eyed Leon who was at her left, gripping her arm sturdily with a palm. She could see his eyes were somewhat flickering, indicating his fatigue. The corner of his eyes began to crow lightly, though they still held that firmness he always mustered to have. His hair had been slightly trimmed, and his body was just as built as she last remembered; walking with destination at hand, Leon was still the man he was, with a hint of something stern implanted in his roots.

Behind her, Aseles could hear the other pair of footsteps, and by the way they rasped slightly, she identified one of them as the older teen’s, Riku’s. Aseles turned her head slightly, eying Cloud who was gripping Riku from the back of his shirt. Cloud still held that stoic expression, but his eyes ran colder, something Aseles would have never guessed could really happen. His eyes caught hers, and she looked away, now glancing to Riku who looked up to catch her gaze. 

Riku was a boy she had formed an odd friendship with, considering their past experience did not hold much faith. Together, the two managed to set themselves aside several times to talk about their past memories, and established a bind that Aseles was pretty content with. Riku spoke little at times with her, but each time he did was something always worth listening to. He was a boy of much wisdom, and despite his awful treacheries, had learned and grown early from his experiences. 

Aseles faced forward again, seeing the green-filled walls on either side, leading to the repaired Postern that was only yards away. Her eyes blinked at the new sleek metal that shined at the top coat of the entire building, creating small patches of different colors along the steel exterior. Aseles stared at the ground, feeling this heavy shudder possess her spine. Shen then felt the strong yank of Leon’s grip, and she refocused, watching her feet climb up the small steps toward the metalized stage. It was a smear of her vision that she soon found herself walking down the steps and into the darkness of the opened door. 

Inside, the floor was made of hard granite stone, and the entire walls were nearly refurbished to the very ceilings themselves. The blocked off pathways of doors and pipes were removed, and Aseles found herself through the maze without difficulty. Toward the center of the maze and leading to the open area, Aseles noticed a new door had been set at the right wall, with Ansem’s Study just straight if they had kept on walking. 

Leon turned toward the door, and wrenched it open, revealing the white, long terror of a hallway. Doors were set on either side, and Aseles couldn’t help but recognize the structure as some sort of…asylum, rooms of self-confinements. Leon and Cloud pulled in their prisoners, Riku and Aseles now walking almost side by side, the two sharing a glance of silence. At last, they approached the last two doors, but the moment Aseles faced away from Riku, they both knew they were going to be set across from each other, unable to communicate side by side.

“Why can’t you trust us?” Aseles asked immediately, before Leon could lead her inside. “Our charges don’t make sense.”

“Something is going on, and we think you both have something to do with it,” Leon answered, “We’re being cautious.”

“Because us defeating Organization XIII wasn’t enough proof,” Riku replied coolly from behind. 

“We have no other choice,” Cloud replied stonily. Aseles stared forward, seeing the room was filled with nothing but a bed, sheets, and a door at the end. Aseles guessed it was some sort of bathroom. 

“Why can’t you tell us what the real reason is?” Aseles judged Leon, a pained expression in her eyes. Leon’s jaw tightened, and it was that moment that Aseles knew that something else was going on; something was not fitting.

“Be on your guard, Aseles.” Riku replied from behind once more, and Aseles slightly turned, seeing he freely walked into his opened room. Cloud closed the door with a loud thud, and a hiss of a gear was emitted from the side, locking the door in place. Aseles faced her door now, feeling Leon beginning to push her inside by her arm. Her feet somewhat skidded on the ground until finally she walked in without another fight. She turned, staring at Leon who stood on the doorway. In that brief moment, all Aseles could remember was the man in the red robes, putting her in that sleeping pod again. Damn it, Ansem, even after death…

“This isn’t fair,” Aseles whispered angrily, shaking her head.

“We just want to keep you safe,” Leon replied lowly, and walked forward, closing the door with a firm hiss. Aseles felt the weight of her binds give away, and her wrists were free to move once more. Falling to the ground with a clank, the sound rumbled into Aseles’ ears, making her wince from how close it was. Slowly, she looked around the room, unsure if she was being watched, but she would bet her keyblade she was; she strode forward to the bed, and sat on it, resting her clutching hands on her knees. She stared to the ground, unsure of when she was going to wake up from this nightmare.

What was Leon saving them from, then?

THE FIRST DAY:

It was a prison, much to Aseles’ displeasure. 

Nothing seemed to fit on what was occurring, nothing that she could remember. What had happened after leaving Radiant Garden those months ago? Did that mistrust appear once more when Aseles had opened the book of her memories? Who was it that gave it to her in the first place?

After everything had settled, Aseles felt quite vulnerable to everyone around her, including Sora. To know that they left off in that awkward phase, Aseles wasn’t sure how she could even come back to his good side. Nevertheless, Sora proved her wrong, and once more the two grew a stronger bond than before; Sora had completely forgiven her for her actions to her surprise. Not to mention that the rushed kiss she gave him during the Organization XIII fight unbalanced things, she felt this shyness ensue whenever she was around him. She cleared to him that it was nothing but a spur of the moment, but Aseles bit her lip from the lie she replayed in her mind. Shaking the thoughts out, she knew it was better to remain as friends, despite her growing fond of Sora. It didn’t matter, honestly, when she was in this grave situation now. 

But again, as Aseles sat in her prison cell, the question remained of who would have given her the book. Axel _was_ on her list of suspects, but it didn’t make sense that he would give them to her later rather than sooner without some other motive. She couldn’t believe that it was he that she had encountered in Hollow Bastion as her first encounter with him. Not to mention the good smack she gave him when she tried to flee was probably something she never would’ve guessed she would do back then. Jeezes, she could only hope Axel wouldn’t hit her back, that is, if he was around. Was he? 

She couldn’t seem to find him when they arrived with Leon and Cloud. Possibly Sora and Kairi were with him, and the rest of the Hollow Bastion Committee. How was everyone else taking this news? Nothing was certain the more she sat there, unknowing of what sort of fate was going to befall on her. What kind of punishment would they even give her…unless it was another exile. 

Aseles shuddered visibly from the thought, rubbing her arms as she laid on the bed, staring at the ceiling. To think Merlin had helped her escape, and soon after she ran into that…mysterious figure in that long, lost trail of the land. She recited the words he had spoken to herself several times, though she was lost on what he could have meant. Her history about the keyblade was not something she was particularly informed of, but the way he said it somehow gave her insight that there is some history of the weapon. Did he mean in general, or did he mean _her_ keyblade specifically?

Aseles sat up slowly, and she rested her hand on her lap, palm up to the ceiling. In a blur of light, the keyblade flashed in her grip, blowing back her bangs before they rested on her forehead again. She stared at the keyblade intently, her eyes running along the rims of the chrome handle, and up the neck to the head. She noticed that her keyblade did not have some sort of chain like Sora’s or Mickey’s, more like Riku with no indication. Was it because she was not sided on only one side? That she had both been in light and dark? It was hard to say, she hadn’t really given much thought of it until now. Riku was the same; he sided with dark, and ended up in light in the end. Hmm….

Aseles called away her keyblade and laid back once more, staring at the ceiling. This jungle of thoughts was beginning to give her a headache the more she came up with questions. No, what Aseles needed was answers. The pieces were not fitting, despite knowing so much of what had happened before. Why would Ansem put her to sleep after all the turmoil that had happened? Did he want her to forget? Was he the one who gave her the memories? But….he was dead; he couldn’t have given her the book. With Axel and Ansem off her list, that left that girl…the girl with raspberry streaks. 

Aseles never got her name, but she knew, deep within her core, that she knew that girl from somewhere. Why else would she have helped Aseles all those times? There was some other connection with her Aseles did not know of, and perhaps…she will _never_ know it now. 

Aseles sighed in annoyance, turning on her side as she again remembered the pod and Ansem. Aseles wondered if he saw it coming, that Xemnas would move in to finish what he had started. If only he hadn’t…then perhaps none of this would have happened.

THE SECOND DAY:

The routine of only being in here grew unsettling. So much that Aseles resorted to just waving her keyblade in her hand, tossing it as if she was in flag spinning. Aseles’ clothes were taken by Leon, who left her with a plain shirt and shorts in the meantime. Aseles did not protest, watching him carefully as he did not meet eye contact with her. 

After the door closed, Aseles merely stared at the door, gliding her hands across it. If only there was a window to see Riku, and see how he was holding up. No other presence was set in the hall, and Aseles began to feel isolated from everyone else, especially Sora and Kairi. She hoped that they were alright, but could not imagine what they were thinking of everything that was happening. Maybe it wasn’t as bad as Aseles was making it out to be, but the two didn’t seem ecstatic of the idea of prison. 

Aseles sat back down on her bed, and she wondered where Axel was. If she and Riku were arrested for Organization crimes, then….Axel must have been, too. Aseles picked her head up, staring at the wall ahead of her. Was it possible he was in here?

Aseles had to wait, she was forced to wait. Wait wait wait. Nothing to do, everything to think about. When nothing was happening here…Aseles knew that’s when everything was happening out there. Axel, where were you, Axel? 

Two hours, and Aseles was biting on her fork, having eaten her plate off clean. She tried her best to not bite too hard, not wanting to chip a tooth while in here. Damn it, this was taking so much longer than she thought. 

Who was deciding her punishment? 

THE THIRD DAY:

The hours seemed to go on for eternity, the cell becoming more and more intense with anxiety. 

Aseles tried to sleep it off for most of the day, until finally she felt entirely refreshed, but mentally exhausted. She rubbed her face roughly, feeling the creases of worry beginning to take shape on her face. How far was this mistrust leading her? How deep was she in her grave? 

Aseles stared at the door, her shoulders slouched. She was tired, she was tired of doing nothing. She was so tired of it. 

The keyblade flashed in her palm, and she stared at the weapon with envy, frustration. Aseles gritted her teeth, and her fist shook, her reflection jittery on the weapon’s neck.

“This was all your fault,” Aseles sighed angrily, “Why did you have to choose me?” Aseles grimaced visibly, and she tossed her keyblade forward, letting it clatter loudly onto the floor. She stared at it once it was still, her eyes full of red and sharp cuts of annoyance. She never understood to this day. Was it something to be understood?

She wasn’t sure...she was so unsure. 

LEON’S POV:

Leon observed at the monitor up above the computer screen, his eyes hardened with his arms crossed tightly on his chest. Feet planted on the floor made him more stable in his chair, despite feeling a bit nauseous this afternoon. His eyes wandered from Riku, to Aseles, and to Axel who was merely sitting against the wall, his head resting back to face the blank ceiling. 

“When is King Mickey arriving?” Yuffie asked from beside. Leon looked to her, seeing she was fiddling with one of her ninja stars, though her eyes were kept on the screen with a small frown on her face. She seemed more built around her body, having been in some training for the past couple of weeks. 

Leon looked away from her, unsure of where they stood now. He knew Yuffie was against placing them in cells, but Leon knew for a fact it was best to until Yen Sid arrived. Mickey strongly suggested it to be done, and Leon would not dare disobey or questions orders from the King.

“Tomorrow morning. He will be here about their cases,” Leon sighed, “Maleficent really isn’t the problem. It’s Xehanort.”

THE FOURTH DAY: 

_Her eyes drifted back and forth, her body unable to lift from the ground. Aseles turned her head sideways, watching a figure kneel beside her. Raspberry highlight slid gracefully across the air, the single eye looking at her while the other was covered in her bangs. She seemed…exhausted, defeated in a way.._

_“You remember me, don’t you?” she asked._

_“What are you talking about?” Aseles mouthed._

_“Do you remember me?”_

_“I…can’t.”_

_“You remember?”_

_“I said…I ca-“_

_“Remember me.”_

_“Stop.”_

_“Remember.”_

_“Can’t- mov-“_

_“RE—ME-me-ME-MBER M-E-e-EEE-”_

The door of the room jerked opened, and Aseles jumped on her bed, gasping horribly. She blinked furiously, and felt a firm grip on her shoulders, shaking her slightly. Aseles shut her eyes, feeling a pained gap in her chest, confused of what she had just dreamt about. It was so quick, and it left this large, disconcerting manifestation.

“Aseles.” She blinked once more, looking up to see it was no one other than Leon, looking alarmed of Aseles’ sudden outburst. Aseles swallowed roughly, settling her arms down as she looked ahead. Had he barely come in, or did he rush to her aid when he saw the dream ensure?

“Bad dream,” Aseles merely replied, rubbing her face off with a hand. 

“Do you need water?” Leon asked next. Aseles shook her head, taken aback of his sudden soft demeanor for her. She looked to him, seeing him now somewhat cautious that she was. He stood up, and in his arm she saw the bundle of her clothes. He gently placed them beside her on the bed, and he nodded once. 

“It’s time,” he announced, “knock when you’re done.” Leon headed to the door, though this time he did not close it entirely, leaving a small gap for Aseles to see outside. He faced forward, his back to the door. Aseles was really going to leave.

Composing herself, Aseles headed to the bathroom with clothes in hand, undressing as quickly as she could after a large splash of water on her face. She gripped the sink tightly with her palms, staring at the drops running down her bangs. What the hell was that dream about? She couldn’t even remember what it was. Even with the promise of finally leaving the room, Aseles didn’t want to now, for some odd reason. She wanted to sleep some more..  
After fully dressed, Aseles recollected her hazed thoughts, giving them one clean swoop before heading to the door. With her languidly feet, she glided across, having used to pacing around this particular path several times, only this time, the door was finally open to leave. 

Aseles knocked briefly, and saw the door open with a gentle swing. Leon stood there, and he approved of her presence as he fully moved out of the way, letting her fully exit the room. Though, Aseles wondered why he was not handcuffing her wrists as before. Nevertheless, without an argument or question, she followed behind him once he beckoned her to follow. She kept pace, though she couldn't help but feel her legs a bit mellow and offbeat. Having this being the farthest she walked, it was as if she lost all motor control in her legs. Gripping onto the wall outside, Aseles continued to follow in Leon's footsteps. They walked along the path to reach the final door of the maze of the structure, and Leon opened it, inviting Aseles to go first. She did so, though she struggled to climb the stone steps. Without a word, Leon came from beside, and gripper her upper, right arm firmly, and began to almost heave her up. Aseles inhaled of sudden grip, but did not fight it as she finally came to the last step...but what she wasn't ready for what she saw. 

On the Postern was practically everyone in the Hollow Bastion Committee. They stood in an arch, facing toward the broken machinery of the structure. Lined up was Yuffie, Cid, and Aerith, followed by Kairi and Sora at the end, closest to Aseles. Needless to say, Yuffie, Cid and Aerith looked the same as before, but who Aseles was really looking at was Kairi and Sora, both relieved to see her. Kairi clutched her hands on her chest, while Sora’s hands turned into soft fists. The two met eye contact, and he smiled to her softly as she got closer. Though, facing them in the opposite direction of the group, and before the already positioned Riku was King Mickey...and Yen Sid.   
Aseles felt her entire body flip, trying her best to keep herself leveled. Oh crap, no, not this guy again. She had nothing against Yen Sid, but his mere glance was something Aseles was intimidated by. As for Mickey, well, she never really talked to him much after the events of Organization XIII. 

Considering the fact that he knew Ansem the Wise was her father, and didn’t bother to tell her was a grudge she was still holding, despite the honorable King respecting Ansem's wishes. Still, Aseles was not too pleased, and looked away as Leon led her forward to stand next to Riku. He turned his head slightly to give her a glance, but said nothing as he and Aseles faced forward. 

Aseles lowered her gaze, however, dodging to look at the wizard's robes delicately folding over his feet. She felt this uncomfortable presence behind her, unsure of what the others might be thinking. 

The sound of the door opening down the staircase caught the brunette's attention, and she looked over, hearing two pairs of feet walking to the stairs. Her eyes wondered when she saw the red tips visible, and she stood stunned to find that Axel was approaching, his hands behind his back and Cloud holding him at his left arm. Axel lifted his gaze, and Aseles met him eye to eye, the two staying very silent as he began to approach. Despite his slight slouch, Axel easily towered Aseles, and now filled the gap at her right, placing her in between the two males now. Cloud let Axel stand on his own, and moved back to stand on Sora's right, but the two did not share a word. It seemed the panel behind was divided the moment Leon placed himself on Cloud’s other side, and faced the two judges at the very front like everyone else. 

Gosh, this was so unsettling. Aseles wasn’t sure if she was going to be able to take anything that they told her. Yen Sid would be delivering her punishment, and she sensed it wasn’t going to be a good one. 

“Hey, how are you?” Axel suddenly asked. Aseles whirled her head to look at him, and she noticed that his skin had grown paler than the usual Axel she remembered. His eyes held a little glimmer, but his red flamed hair still stood boldly on his head like an enraged lion. Aseles merely nodded shakily, gulping back her words as she faced forward again. Axel did the same, and the three indicted friends faced their jury.

“Greetings, fellow fighters,” Yen Sid began, his hands folded neatly against his robes. His head angled slightly forward, viewing the three in order, making Riku exhale, Aseles hunch her shoulders up, and Axel fix his position higher. “You all know why you’re here, and it has been brought to my attention that the King wanted me to pass judgment to your crimes from the past.” Aseles clenched her jaw underneath her skin; it was the mouse that ordered this to happen? Yeah, because she was now going to forgive him. 

“We do not wish to punish you, but to merely state that there is another danger afoot, and we do not want to endanger ourselves, but most importantly, we do not want you to endanger _yourselves_.”

“Why would we want to do that?” Riku asked, taking a moment to gather his words.

“Our future dangers involve those of great power, familiar of dark forces we have fought against. Whether you believe in destiny or fate, rest assured that we fear that perhaps you may determine the balance of what can be prevented, but also of what can be created.” Aseles narrowed her eyes, now looking at Yen Sid with interest and concern. What was this warlock talking about? 

“It’s because we have been on opposite sides, correct?” Axel added next. Yen Sid nodded, to Aseles’ astonishment. 

“Precisely. I do not want to rule you out specifically against everyone else, but Leon was determined to get you here, and be protected. Arguments flooded on whether it was the right thing to do, but I will agree that his option was for the best.” Leon was protecting them, as he had told her before. She didn’t seem to believe him at the moment, but now that Yen Sid was backing up his actions...

“Our choices are what make us, but do not feel pressured by what I say must be done,” Yen Sid lifted a gesturing hand to the side, “your choices are based on what _you_ think is right.”

_”...It is not the sake of what is right or wrong...it is whether you believe you are righteous on your own....”_

Aseles felt her teeth bite onto her tongue, and she felt the soles of her feet melt against the ground. Those words...in that meadow...

Yen Sid continued, “The worlds have changed since your absence, and I speak of this on your behalf as well, Sora. Your past choices may have defined the person you once were, but rest assured, they do not have to define of who you are now. Instead, they have shaped you to evolve and grow, and I feel that this will be a large necessity for what is to arrive.”

Yen Sid smiled softly, gazing among the three, “You all have mended your ways, and come to the decision to fight back evil and all its courses. I am very proud of you. Now,” Yen Sid beckoned two fingers in Mickey’s direction. The mouse nodded, and took a couple of steps forward, and looked up to the three. 

“It’s nice to see you guys again, but I’m sorry it had to come to this. Recently, I came across some worlds, and I found keybearers, just like you.”

“What?” Aseles blinked rapidly, “There’s more?”

Mickey nodded, though he grew a large frown, “Unfortunately, they have all gone missing, and we were afraid that the same might’ve happened to the four of you.”

“Wait, what do you mean ‘missing’?” Sora had strode forward, Kairi quickly following beside him as they stood on Riku’s free side. Axel narrowed his eyes and seem to ponder on his thoughts, but Aseles looked away from him, and looked to Mickey again. 

“I’m not sure, exactly. I gathered as much resources as I could, but my only guess is that it’s the work of a higher force. That maybe...perhaps....it’s Xehanort.”

“Master Xehanort is a man of very ill doings, and had attempted many treacherous events in his past. It affected the past master wielders of the keyblade, but we fear that he has made an appearance now,” Yen Sid replied after. “Keybearers are vastly approaching, but they are not the good wielders we would expect them to be.”

“You mean they’ve fought against you?” Sora blinked rapidly. 

“Yes,” Mickey nodded slightly, “They call themselves ‘Substitutes’, but that’s as far as I know.”

“Then why come to the conclusion that it’s this Xehanort?” Kairi asked next.

“The keyblade...” Axel opened his mouth. Aseles shot her glance to him, and so did everyone else as he rubbed his wrist, his eyes concentrated on the grow. Then, the moment he looked at Aseles, she felt an unsettling burst of shivers explode on her neck. 

“T-The one he gave me....” Aseles replied, looking to Yen Sid, “The one Xemnas gave me. He was tied to Xehanort.” Aseles nodded fervently, “Maybe it seems farfetched but-“

“Then he must be here,” Axel added, “but how can that be, if he’s been dead for so long?”

“We can’t rule that out,” Mickey quickly replied, shaking his head, “It’s worth looking into.” 

“Then we should get to it, huh?” Sora replied.

“Most certainly,” Yen Sid replied. “I trust in all of you to confide in one another; another adventure is approaching, and it’s best to be ready with your friends.” Yen Sid raised a hand, and he twirled it once, “Until then, train well, protectors.” In a sparkle of light, Yen Sid’s silhouette was that was left until his entire form dissolved into the air like tiny twisters. Aseles blinked, feeling footsteps approaching from behind. She turned, seeing it was Leon, Cloud, Aerith, Cid and Yuffie all facing the informed group. 

“We apologize for not telling you sooner,” Aerith softly commented, “We were merely thinking of what was best to do in this situation.”

“A crappy one at that,” Cid muttered, receiving a stare from Yuffie.

“We didn’t want to lose you,” Leon sighed heavily, “But whatever this is, we’ll help you any way we can.”

Sora smiled, and he held out his hand, “Of course. Thanks, Leon. But...a warning would be nice next time.”

Leon scoffed once, but he reached out, and gripped onto Sora’s palm, “Of course. Next time.” Leon turned his gaze to Aseles, and he walked to her, extending his hands out slightly in her direction, “Aseles-“

“It’s okay, don’t worry about it,” Aseles replied slowly, shaking her head. Leon dropped his hands, resting them at his sides. The last thing she wanted was to be hugged right now. No, not with this large pile of remembering collapsing onto her. 

_”...You mark your own path, but if you fall, know that the keyblade will be there to guide you to what you truly want...”_

Could it be?

“It’s good to see you again,” Yuffie smiled, placing her fists on her hips as she gazed to the group. “You guys could use some caffeine in you, or a good workout to pump you up!”

The chatter grew as Kairi and Sora both nodded at Leon’s words, with Cid, Yuffie and Aerith paying attention. Cloud walked away on his own, seeming more relaxed in his poise than he did before. Riku in the meantime was talking to Mickey about something Aseles couldn’t catch, but in reality, she walked off to the side, her eyes scanning the floor. She felt the touch of a hand on her back, but she didn’t turn. 

“Hey, you okay, kid?” Axel asked.

“To be honest, I was hoping you weren’t going to punch me in the face when I got here,” Aseles admitted, resulting in a chuckle from Axel. 

“Really?” Axel mused, “thought it was a nice memory when it finally came to me.”

Aseles quirked a smile, turning to look at him, “Nice to see you, Axel.”

“Nice to see you too,” Axel smirked back, “Not looking too hot, are you?”

“I could say the same about you.”

“But hey...it’s been a while. Nice to see you’re here,” Axel replied, ruffling Aseles’ bangs. Aseles dismissed his hand off with a push of a wave, cracking an eye up to him as her bangs rested on her left eye, “I’m guessing you were locked up longer than Riku and me.”

Axel shrugged, “I wasn’t really counting honestly. It all makes sense now, knowing what Leon did what he did. Not much of a talker but it looks like his heart is always in the right place.”

“Yeah....” Aseles’ smile lowered, the corner of her lips resisting from sagging all the way down.

“Hmm? Something else is on your mind?” 

Aseles nodded, drawing her voice to a whisper, “I don’t...think he’s dead.”

“Who?”

“Xehanort,” Aseles reclaimed. 

“What makes you say that?” 

_“...The battle is approaching, and it won’t be long until he makes his move...”_

“I’m...not sure,” she shook her head slowly, “a feeling....I guess.”

LATER:

Aseles was sitting in a wooden chair, in the regular house she had shared with Sora, Donald and Goofy prior before when they were staying in Radiant Garden. The kitchen looked worn and heavily used, with a lot more pots and dishes set out for food. Aseles in the meantime was cradling a glass of juice, her feet on the bottom of the chair and making her body somewhat compress in between the arms that sheltered her. On the seat beside her was Axel, along with Sora, Riku and Kairi in the other seats. Leon took the seat across from Sora, and behind him cooking the food was Aerith. 

In all honesty, Aseles was in no mood to eat more than half of her plate. She was not physically here, her thoughts roaming across the stretches of land and space. Something sublime was holding her at bay at the shoreline of her feelings, and despite knowing what they might be, she couldn’t touch it. She couldn’t touch those feelings, those impulsive sentiments of hesitation. She felt this dark presence among the air, and she couldn’t define what it was, nor could she even fathom what waited in her wake. It had something to do with that mysterious figure she had encountered from so long ago, but despite her best efforts to try to guess who it was, she fell short of no guess. 

The figure mentioned a he, and thus far, the only villainous, head-mastermind they have come across was Maleficent, the fake Ansem, and not long ago, Xemnas. Was it possible the mysterious ally was referring to either Ansem or Xemnas? Aseles was so unsure that she was beginning to feel the tight constrictions of her bowels, making her shift uncomfortably in her seat. A deep shiver sprayed along her arms and legs, making her neck sweat and dry. Gosh...this was all too heavy to take. 

“It wouldn’t hurt to look up some information about Xehanort,” Riku admitted next, breaking the silence, “we could get a lead on his whereabouts.”

“It’s a place to start, considering we really don’t know much of what happened those years ago when he was alive,” Leon shook his head, rubbing his temple.

“So, this Xehanort,” Sora began, holding out his fingers as he counted the different names, “was really this guy from the past, that pretended to be Ansem, then was defeated by us, who then turned into a Nobody named Xemnas. Now, we’re dealing with Xehanort...?”

“It’s a long shot, but we might be dealing with someone who had ties with him, and his continued research of...Ansem the Wise,” Leon momentarily paused, briefly looking to Aseles who met his eye contact. “It would seem improbable to find it exactly being Xehanort. From what Your Majesty explained to me, in a very brief sentence, is that he actually encountered Xehanort from before, but he himself doesn’t remember exactly whether or not the man _actually_ survived.”

“Is that all he told you?” Aseles replied next, catching all eyes, “What if he’s hiding something else?”

“No, I don’t believe so,” Leon raised a brow, “Unless you suspect him to be.” 

In her personal opinion, yes, Mickey _was_ hiding something. She instantly felt it on instinct, but she didn’t know if it was her bitterness with the mouse on whether or not this could be true. Instead, Aseles said nothing, shrugged, and sipped more of her juice. She realized that Axel was looking closely to her, but was being mindful of his own thoughts, and instead paid back attention to the group as did Aseles.

“We looked more into it, and we found a ton of diary inscriptions that Xehanort was indeed Ansem’s apprentice during the time of his research, but any record history of Xehanort’s past was not mentioned or scribbled. It was as if Ansem had found him randomly, but it makes me wonder if it was really an accident that Xehanort found him.”

“Say, do you remember anything, Kairi?” Sora blinked, looking to her curiously beside. 

Kairi blinked, a small crease of a blush blooming across her face, “Not that I know of. I remember my grandmother, and the castle, but that’s all I remembered.”

“And you?” Sora turned his attention to Aseles now, and Aseles caught his gaze. 

She merely shook her head, “No, I don’t remember anything of my childhood.”

“That reminds me....” Leon began, holding his chin as he looked straight to Aseles now, “How is it that we barely remembered about you?”

Aseles swallowed some of her juice, and set her glass on the table. She settled her feet down properly on the ground, flat and straight while she slightly hunched forward. Her arms rested on the table, pressing most of her weight against them. Her darkened, blue eyes looked among the surface of the wood, and her thoughts began to settle to the present.

“Two mothers ago, someone delivered a book to me, on the island. There was no inscription of who it was from, but when I opened it...that’s when I remembered,” Aseles replied, sighing as she opened a palm in front of herself, “I didn’t know what I did then, and I’m still not sure of what happened before I arrived in Traverse Town. All I know, for certain, is that when I left Hollow Bastion, I ran into...Ansem again....in Twilight Town. I didn’t know it was him...but he...” Aseles inhaled, “He knocked me out, and he put me in a pod. That’s all I recalled, leading me up to when you and Cloud found me in Traverse Town sometime after. I don’t know how long I was in there, but it must’ve been a while, if someone infiltrated it, and opened the pod to get me out.”

“I see,” Leon crossed his arms, leaning back comfortably in his chair, “It’s a good thing you have your memories back. Even though you don’t have them all, it’s a start.”

“Yeah..” Aseles nodded gently, her gaze toward her arms now. 

“Then we should rest, before we make our next move,” Leon nodded to the group, “Tomorrow, you guys need to get back into the groove of things, and see what needs to be done. We’ll make preparations, and find out how we will handle this in groups. The Substitutions may be a threat now, but the faster we tackle them down, the better chances we have. Is everyone clear?”

“Clear,” Sora replied with Kairi while Riku and Aseles merely nodded. 

The sounds of clattering tables rung out, and soon after, Aseles found herself washing the dishes with Axel, who seemed very keen on helping her. Aseles did not bicker against him about it, and instead handed him the plates to dry off while Aerith and Leon began to clear the table. 

The afternoon approached rapidly, and Aseles went outside for fresh air, leaning against the top, brick balcony of the Bailey. The ground below was filled with greenery and flowers, and it made her smile as the trail of it seemed to trail off into the distance. The air was fresh and clear, and it kissed her bangs softly. Again, with Axel beside her, the two enjoyed each other’s company in little silence, all the while the night was slowly creeping out the mystic shadows that the moon displayed.

“Hey, Axel?”

“Yeah?” 

“Do you ever think about Roxas?”

Axel scoffed lightly, “All the time.”

Aseles looked to him, “Do you miss him a lot?”

“...Yeah....I do,” Axel replied, “Roxas was the friend that never gave up on you. He always wanted to do the right thing, no matter the consequences.”

“He sounds a lot like Sora, then,” Aseles quirked a smile.

“They are a lot alike,” Axel nodded gently, “but rarely do Nobodies differ from their counterparts. Something else makes them that way, and I don’t know what it is.” Aseles’ eyes narrowed as he looked to the ground below, her chin rested on her arms. That Nobody...Ihara....

Aseles recalled that she differently greatly from that somebody of hers, the one with no name, and raspberry streaks. Aseles questioned if that girl was still out there.

“Can I ask you something, Axel?” 

“Sure, I don’t see why not.”

“Did you ever heard of the Nobody Ihara?”

“Yes, I have, actually,” Axel announced, alerting Aseles immediately. She straightened up slowly, her eyes on Axel as he rested his back against the brick divider of the balconies, “I never thought of her, after she disappeared.”

“She...disappeared?” Aseles blinked. 

“Well, yeah,” Axel raised a brow, hinting down to Aseles. Aseles was confused for a moment, but before she could question why, the memory hit her from behind her skull, rattling her brain. Right, when Aseles was freed from Ihara’s control, and was saved by the raspberry-streaked hair girl. Afterwards, Aseles pretty much won with a stroke of luck, and was able to disarm Ihara completely. From then on, Aseles did not know what had happened to her. 

“But, how did you know her?” Aseles tried again.

“Xemnas had shown interest in her. I personally didn’t like her, but hey, big guy called the shots.” Axel waved a hand, “Anyway, Ihara never came back during a certain time. Xemnas pretty much acted like she never existed in the first place, but something told me he was planning something else with her. Not so sure now, since yeah. How do you know who she is?”

“I met her a couple of times...” Aseles began carefully, “but things didn’t go well. Some girl....saved me from Ihara, but she never gave me her name. All I remember is her colored hair, and her bright eyes...” Aseles rubbed her cheek, and shook her head slightly, “That’s all I can remember.”

“Hmm...that’s interesting. Maybe you will; you don’t know it yet,” Axel hummed thoughtfully. 

“Hmm?” Aseles caught his quizzical hum, and she turned to see it was Sora walking into the Bailey. He thought their eyes looking to him, and he smiled, waving generously. 

“Hey,” Sora greeted as he approached. Axel pushed himself off the wall, and merely walked toward Sora as Aseles watched. 

Axel patted Sora on the shoulder, “Looking good, winner.” Sora blinked at his remark, but Axel smirked, and continued walking, leaving Aseles and Sora now alone in the Bailey. Sora turned his attention to the teen now, and he smiled as he came to stand beside her. His ocean orbs ventured across the green plains below, and off into the horizon line of the wonderful view. His eyes glided upwards among the brightening stars of the sky. Aseles rested her arms on the balcony again, resting her chin on her prompted hand now. 

“How you doing?” Sora smiled, folding his hands together lazily as his elbows rested on the spot next to her. 

Aseles smiled faintly to him, “Doing alright, yourself?”

“Not bad, not bad at all,” Sora beamed as he faced forward, his head slightly tilted to gaze up at the stars properly, “It’s a lot to take in, but I know we’ll be alright.”

“With you leading us, I don’t doubt it,” Aseles added, “You’re a good leader, Sora.” 

“No, we’re a good team,” Sora corrected, looking back to Aseles. She felt a small crease of her blush beginning to form, but she casually looked away. 

“Where’s Riku and Kairi?” 

“Kairi already headed to bed, and Riku is reading something with Cid about gummi ships,” Sora responded, “but knowing him, he’s probably waiting for us to get back.”

“Heh, right,” Aseles nodded, chuckling lightly. 

“You know, Aseles,” Sora cleared his throat, drumming his fingers against his knuckles on the other hand, “we’ve had some faults in the past, but I want you to know that it doesn’t change what we have now.”

“What do you mean?” Aseles looked to him with blinking, naive eyes.

“I mean, about the way you sided with Maleficent, and how I attacked you back then,” Sora started, “and then my mistrust for you, when you were siding with Axel.”

“No, it’s fine. Really, you had every right to feel defensive about everything,” Aseles replied, “Though...you could’ve been easier on the fighting part.”

“Yeah....sorry about that,” Sora sighed, “I would never hurt you, Aseles.” She saw him gaze directly at her, and again, she felt the blush of heat increase on her face the gaze stayed connected. 

“I wouldn’t want to hurt you, either, I mean- that is-“ Aseles coughed slightly, straightening up as Sora followed suite, “We should...head back.”

“Yeah, good point,” Sora smiled, “Riku’s probably driven mad by all the lectures Cid’s giving him.” Aseles giggled as she and Sora began to walk side by side out of the Bailey. As they did, she couldn’t help but look over to him, seeing his hands behind his head as he walked in his confident stride, as usual. His demeanor was nothing but brightness and comfort, and she felt instantly relieved to see him this way. 

Yeah, a new adventure was waiting for them. Was she ready? Yes, if she had her friends along with her. 

THE NEXT MORNING:

Catching up with everyone was a feeling Aseles absolutely admired, but she didn’t know it would make her feel incredibly tired. She sat up on her bed, yawning as she scratched her head. She looked about the single room, and checked on the clock to see it was around eight in the morning. Groggily, Aseles stood and splashed water onto her face, cleaning off her sweat and teeth to look somewhat presentable to go outside. Next she walked back out of her room, slipping onto her tossed jeans, and a borrowed, white shirt from Yuffie’s. Fixing her bed somewhat, with the corners mangled and flopped, Aseles slipped on clean socks and her jeans, and began to head out of her room. She looked down the hall to see no other doors were open, but from the mere sound of silent snores and exhales, Aseles knew that she was the only one awake this morning. 

Tying her hair up in a messy bun, Aseles walked down the slightly spiraling staircase, heading into the kitchen and grabbing herself a bowl with cereal. She ate quietly and quickly, cleaned her plate and headed out the door. She thought it wouldn’t kill to look around, so she set her sights off toward the Market Place, hoping to buy some potions and ethers for a cheap price. 

Aseles made her way through the restored brick houses set around of the castle town, and soon found herself heading up the stairs toward where the prime foundation of the Market Place laid. Despite the morning, shops were already buzzing with residents buying and selling, and Aseles walked herself among the crowd, looking along the shops set side by side. Some stalls were set out, and it was there Aseles realized that there were definitely new businesses, which meant a lot more people were in this world now. Interesting. She wondered if they were picked up from Traverse Town-

“How much?!”

“500 more munny, kid. Sorry.” Aseles cocked her head slightly, looking to a particular food store two yards away. It held several spheres of colored fruits, and at the bottom read “Delicious Inquiries”. Aseles walked forward, seeing a young boy was battling with his hair at the counter, seeming to have forgotten the rest of his munny somewhere else. He was a boy of darkened brown hair and fairly tanned skin, though he seemed....awfully familiar.

The boy only shook his head, crossing his arms, “Then I guess I won’t buy it.”

“Hold on,” Aseles walked into the opened doorway of the store, instantly stuffing her hands into her pockets, hoping she didn’t forget her munny. She smiled in relief, the boy stepping back from surprises as Aseles handed the clerk the exact munny that was due. The clerk nodded in approval of her coins, and handed over the paper bag he was about to retrieve. 

“Come again,” the clerk replied, and he went off to attend another customer who was waiting in line. Aseles grabbed both paper bags and beckoned the boy with a lift of her head to follow. He did so, and the two regrouped with the purchased food. Aseles faced the boy, and then snapped her fingers.

“I got it! Stan, right?” Aseles remarked.

The boy of dark eyes looked up to her, squinting them in sever question, “How do you know my nam- OH....OHH! Aseles! Right?” 

“Heh, yeah, you got it,” Aseles nodded, placing her hands on her hips, “You’ve gotten taller, huh?”

“Yeah, you bet I did. I didn’t know you were coming back,” Stan blinked, carrying the habits in a manner that hinted that he had done this before. “Um...I don’t know if it’s a good idea that you’re sticking around here.”

“...What?” Aseles raised a brow, “What do you mean by that?” Stan took a quick look around, and when Aseles follow, she noticed that some of the shoppers about had stopped what they were doing, and were staring directly at Aseles. Aseles felt her arm tugged, and she followed as Stan began to lead her away, while still amazingly balancing the bags against his chest. They came upon the opening of a nearby alleyway, but Aseles knew that several footsteps were approaching. 

“What’s going on?” Aseles asked the eleven year-old boy. 

“They’ll think you’re one of them,” Stan suddenly replied, and pointed to Aseles’ empty hand. Aseles grew vastly confused of his remark, but when she gazed on her open palm, she finally grasped what Stan was talking about: he was referring to the Substitutions. 

Were the Substitutions that much of a threat that basically everyone else in the world had grown some sort of prejudice about it? No, they couldn’t possibly believe that, could they? Wait, was that why so many residents now lived here, because their own worlds were endangered by the Substitutions themselves?

“You mean because I have a keyblade-“

“HEY!” Aseles and Stan turned, seeing a group of men were now making their way to build an arc around the duo. Aseles sighed in disbelief, her shoulders slumping and her knees somewhat bending. Jeezes.

“Is there a problem?” Aseles questioned.

“What are you doing to that boy?” the imposing man at the center of the arc inquired in almost a hiss.

“Nothing. Just having a chat,” Aseles answered calmly back. Stan gulped loudly, and grabbed his bags a bit tighter, the crinkling of the bags catching Aseles’ ears. 

“Well we don’t take your kind here,” the leader of the group answered again, his green eyes glowering.

“My kind?” Aseles unmistakably scoffed out.

“Aseles, you’re not going to fight them are you?” Stan whispered. Aseles looked to him, and merely shrugged.

“What are you two talking about?!” one man called out, his voice echoing in the alley more aggressively.

“You just like butting into people’s conversations don’t you?” Aseles resisted to groan.

“Stan?!” Aseles noticed a woman cutting through the arch of the group. Her wavy, black hair extended to the middle of her abdomen, her face pale and smooth. Her eyes brimmed in the light, despite her dark irises, and her flowery dress flowed behind her as she stepped near the center of the surrounding crowd.

“Mom?” Stan asked, confused, “Erm..I have the groceries.”

“Get over here, Stan. I don’t want you talking to her,” she suddenly answered.

Aseles’ mouth dropped, “What did I do?!” 

“You wield one of those crazy objects! I don’t want you hurting my boy!” she defended, coming a step forward, but unable to take another.

“She’s my friend! And she wasn’t hurting me!” Stan argued. His mom’s eyes widened, unbelieving what he was saying, “She helped me buy the groceries!”

“Enough!” the leader of the men answered again, taking a step forward with a finger pointing to Aseles, “She’s no different. She wields a ‘keyblade’…..we don’t need to know anything else. You wielders take what you please, and cause chaos and destruction on every world you cross. I’ve seen it with my own eyes; you’re all the same.”

“That is a prejudice assumption,” Aseles crossed her arms, Stan still standing by her side.

“Why should we expect any different from you?” the leader announced again, and loudly enough for everyone to hear, “When all you seek is glory and ruin! You may think you’re doing us all a favor, but in reality, you are the problem, _not_ the solution!”

“Because I’m here to help you, to protect my world and the people who live in it!” Aseles quickly cut in, jabbing a finger to his direction, “You may not want me to save you, or have anything to do with you, but speak for yourself, because not everyone here thinks the same way as you do! I may look like the problem, but I don’t have to prove myself to someone like you; you don’t know me, so you have no right to tell me who I am.”

“Yeah! If you want to get to her, you have to go through me!” Stan suddenly stood in front, the bags against his chest securely gripped.

“What’s going on here?” Aseles immediately recognized the voice, and Aseles tensed slightly from seeing the crowd break away, and reveal Leon striding forward into the middle of the chaos. His eyes locked onto the group of people, then moved to Stan who smiled nervously, and finally to Aseles, who groaned slightly and rolled her head briefly back in defeat; she already felt the lecture approaching. 

“Why am I not surprised to find you here?” Leon questioned.

“Hey, I didn’t do anything,” Aseles answered, “I was helping Stan buy his groceries.”

“That’s nice of you,” Leon answered, looking down to Stan. Needless to say, he felt instantly intimidated by the brunette. 

“Erm, um- thanks again, Aseles,” Stan replied quickly, “I’ll see you later!” The boy headed to the group, and pulled his mom out of sight. The mob was all that was left, aside from the peering eyes of the walking civilians.

“Why are you all still there?” Leon called out as he continued to look at Aseles. The group quickly dispersed, leaving nothing but fading footsteps as evidence of their gathering. 

“Thanks for saving me,” Aseles rubbed the back of her head. 

“You’ve grown up a bit, from the last time I saw you,” Leon reached forward, and held onto Aseles’ right shoulder, “It’s nice to see you stand your ground; it suits you.”

“Um...thanks,” Aseles replied next. 

Leon sighed, and he began to guide Aseles, the two beginning to head toward the beginning of the Market Place, “I know the arrest was sudden, but please believe me, when I say I thought of nothing but your safety, as well as everyone else’s.”

“I know...” Aseles slowly nodded, but she avoided his gaze.

“Why does it sound like you don’t believe me?”

Aseles huffed out, reaching the end of the crowd as she then faced Leon who took an interest of her position, “It’s just....it’s hard, when I feel that my remembered memories feel like they were my _last_ memories I had with you.” Leon instantly knew what she was referring to, by the softening of his eyes and the drop of his hand from her shoulder. 

The mere fact that Leon was going to exile her unsettled Aseles greatly, and despite it from being so long ago, it really felt like it only happened those two months ago when she recollected everything else. To know that he didn’t believe her, and didn’t want to hear anything she wanted to say; that was not the Leon she knew, but it was the Leon she started out with. When he treated her like family, and she...

“I’m sorry, Leon. Truly, I’m...sorry for everything I did,” Aseles exhaled shakily, rubbing her eyes off rapidly. “I-...I don’t...it feels like-“

“I understand,” Leon interrupted, “then take the time you need. But know this, Aseles-“ Leon gripped both of her shoulders, causing her to look up to him, “That no matter what happened between us was nothing but the past. We learn from our mistakes, the both of us, and I will always be there when you need me.”

Aseles nodded gently, and she felt the trickles of her tears at the edges of her eyes. She sniffed, and dropped her gaze, feeling her bangs conceal her face, “It’s just.....e-ever since...Ansem left-“ She stopped, and she picked up her head, her hands clutching at Leon’s forearms, “You are the _closest_ person I’ve ever had to a father....this whole time h-he was gone, I just-“

“It’s alright,” Leon opened his arms, and Aseles lurched herself forward, burying her face into his shoulder, her hands clutching the back of his shoulder blades. Leon brushed her back comfortingly, “Your friends will never abandon you. We’ll protect you, Aseles, no matter what happens. We are your family, and you are ours.”


	2. Acquaintance

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I cried.....a little....inside. These last three weeks.....HELL. HELL. THAT IS THE ONLY WORD TO DESCRIBE IT. BUSY HELL. HELLA BUSY. BUSY BEEEES. BZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ
> 
> I absolutely had no time to write anything, and it was sooooo ridiculous DX I don't even know how it's possible, but IT HAPPENED. I wrote all of this today, so if you see any typos, please be a good sport and attach sticky notes on your screen to pretend they're not there. It might be A LOT OF STICKY NOTES, so stock up fellas. 
> 
> Here is the next part. I was five pages short, but I honestly was so tired to write anything else. Please, enjoy. Now I'm going to contemplate about my life, while listening to KH music on constant repeat, because I feel like I deserve some peace. Enjoy, and have a great day/night guys!
> 
> Sincerely,  
>  [REALLY TIRED] Keys

Walking alongside Leon, Aseles felt more secure in her place, even with their silent stride. Leon was someone Aseles had always depended on, but it was never of physical help, but of emotional stability, and wisdom. He was the father she could look up to, even though they were hardly related. She wondered if Leon had any kids, but didn’t bother to bury in his business either. Instead, she enjoyed their silence together as he led the way through the housing structures, down a similar path Aseles was all too familiar with.   
The green door to Merlin’s Study had been repainted, and small trinkets hung on the keystone of the archway. Leon opened the door, gesturing for Aseles to walk in. She did so, smiling to him as she then looked inside the room.

The books were now placed against the far, end wall at her left, revealing more space in the middle. The small platforms that once held Merlin’s table and chair was gone, and instead rows of seats were placed, separated by a few feet to leave room to walk through. A huge, town map was placed flat against the far, front wall, on the left of the upgraded computer where Cid was sitting. A table of pens and markers was settled under the map. Most of the seats were preoccupied, and all heads turned to gaze to Aseles and Leon who had entered the room. Yuffie, Riku and Kairi had taken a seat, though Cloud and Axel stood themselves up against the wall in the back. Cid turned in his chair, looking to Aseles with a slight grin.

“Look who decided to show up late,” he chuckled. 

“No, where’s Sora?” Aseles crossed her arms. “I wouldn’t be surprised if he’s still in bed.”

“Actually, no.” Aseles turned to the sound of the keybearer’s voice from behind, but the air was suddenly flying, and colors of green were suffocating her. 

“Aseles!” Goofy’s voice chimed as Aseles flailed, breaking her face away from his shoulder and breathing. 

“G-Goofy!” Aseles cheered, laughing as she hugged him back. Goofy, a bit shorter from her height, smiled warmly as the two separated. Behind Goofy was Donald walking in, his small smile taking Aseles in. She beamed and kneeled, embracing Donald who patted her back.

“It’s good to see you,” Donald replied as the two broke up, Aseles now standing properly. She looked past them to see Sora walking in with Leon closing the door. 

“Thought you might like the surprise,” Sora chuckled, crossing his arms. 

“When did you guys get here?” Aseles inquired to Donald while Goofy was waving hi to everyone else, and giving the approaching Kairi a hug as well. 

“Not too long ago, actually,” Donald replied, “King Mickey told us to come right away; he told us everything.” Aseles nodded. “Goofy also wanted to say hi.”

“Haha, nice,” Aseles chuckled, “It’s good to see you guys.”

“And it’s nice to see you, Aseles,” goofy walked over, patting the top of her head with his gloved hand, “You’ve gotten taller.” Aseles blushed and quickly waved his hand off.

“Alright, alright, sit down,” Leon announced as he rounded the huddled group and headed to the front of the chair. Aseles, Sora, Donald and Goofy quickly made their way to some empty seats, sitting behind the front row that already occupied Yuffie, Riku and Kairi. Aseles could only guess that they were holding some sort of meeting. 

Leon cleared his throat and crossed his arms, “As of right now, the security system is having problems staying online, and we need to fix it as soon as possible. Kind of convenient that the two of you” –Leon gazed to Goofy and Donald, then to Sora- “arrived at this time. I’ll need the three of you to pay Tron a visit, to see how the Grid is holding up.”

“We get to see Tron? Sweet,” Sora grinned widely. 

“In the meantime, Cloud, Axel and Yuffie will head to the outskirts of the town, and place the prime lines of the powered shield in place. I’ll need you, Riku and Kairi, to help them out.” The two nodded. Finally, Leon eyed Aseles, “As for you, I need you to go through some files in the main database to see if any of them could work.” Aseles raised a brow, but Leon reassured her with a look. She couldn’t decide it was because he thought she was fit for the job, or the fact that the computer was in Ansem’s Computer Room. 

Everyone broke from their spots, Aseles traveling with Sora, Donald and Goofy, and Leon and Aerith who tagged along. As they did, Aseles was heavily greeted with a hooked arm over her shoulder, Sora grinning from ear to ear as he led Aseles toward Donald and Goofy’s stride. Aseles stumbled briefly, but kept her balance as she smiled at Goofy and Donald’s arrival. Not much had changed in their appearance since they last met, and she was very grateful to see they had not taken any ill attitude with her, especially Donald. 

“How you doing, Aseles?” Goofy asked first.

“I’m alright, and yourselves?? It’s been a while.”

“Oh, you know, everything is good! And Donald is back with Daisy,” Goofy chimed with a chuckle.

“Heh, I bet they’re always holding hands,” Sora teased, granting him a flushed Donald. 

“No we don’t!” Donald defended, mumbling. 

“They do…” Goofy whispered lightly, making Aseles and Sora chuckle. 

“Where were you this morning?” Sora questioned, giving Aseles’ shoulders a firm squeeze, reminding her she was still in his possession.

“Erm..I was…at the Market Place,” Aseles replied, scratching her cheek, “I ran into Stan, the little guy, remember?”

“Ahh, yeah I remember,” Sora nodded. 

“Though, I didn’t know that the residents would be so hostile..” Aseles frowned slightly.

“What do you mean?” the brunette male blinked.

“When I was talking with Stan, a small mob of people approached me. They were angry…that I had a keyblade,” Aseles replied. Sora slowed his pace, along with Donald and Goofy who gazed to Aseles with slow blinks. “I pretty much told them off, but it makes you wonder how much damage these…other keybearers have done to get that impression.”

“That’s because some of them were rescued, from other worlds.” The gang of four turned, seeing Leon walking to them directly with Aerith beside him, “Most of them ended up in Traverse Town, where Cloud and I pick them up, and then bring them here.”

“One of them said he saw it, so…I’m guessing Radiant Garden isn’t his home world,” Aseles replied.

“Don’t let it bother you too much,” Leon reassured, walking past the group, “I believe you guys can help us, and that’s all that matters.”

“Leon’s right!” Sora smiled, patting Aseles’ shoulder firmly, “We’re back together; nothing can stop us.” Aseles felt uplifted of his comment, and smiled with a firm nod. 

The group continued through the Postern to the inside of the building. Aseles briefly shivered, but remembered she wasn’t brought in to be incarcerated this time. Instead, she was able to stride through the corridors with the group and pass the large door, and then enter the small hallway that led to Ansem’s Study. Aseles briefly inspected the small library that held Ansem’s things, and she slowed purposely to take her time. She caught up with Leon who waited last for her, and the two entered the Computer Room. However, upon entering, Aseles’ eyes immediately caught the new installment on the top of the screen of the monitor. There was several screens, a good amount, she might add; all were turned off, but if Aseles had to guess, they were installed cameras in the confinement rooms. Jeezes, she knew she was being watched. 

“You need to check if there have been any damages from inside the computer,” Aerith advised as the trio before her nodded.

“You got it!” Sora smiled. “We’ll see if we can pay Tron a visit too.”

“If you run into him, tell him I said hi,” Aseles smiled. Sora agreed, and he, Donald and Goofy stood before the platform of the circular mechanism behind them. 

“Ready!” Goofy replied as all three toughened out their chests. Aseles quirked a smile, shaking her head as Leon headed over to the keyboard, and pressed a singular button. The large, yellow machine at the back of the room glowed brightly, zooming powerfully to life. In a small, abrupt zap, all three were struck from behind, pixels replacing their once human outlines. With a quick zap, the trio was gone, leaving Aerith and Leon with Aseles. 

“We recovered every bit data about Ansem’s security system,” Leon began, catching Aseles’ attention. He began to press several commands on the keyboard, and the screen itself began to open up numerous files.”

“So what do you need me to do?” Aseles asked.

Aerith came from behind, and patted the middle of Aseles’ back gently, “We felt it would be proper if you looked through his files, instead of us.” A small hiccup clogged Aseles’ throat, but she nodded at Aerith’s comment. 

“I understand,” Aseles replied. 

“Do your best,” Leon pulled up the rolling chair he had set aside, and placed it in front of the keyboard now. Aseles adjusted her position, and sat down, turning the seat toward the large machine. Her darkened eyes brightened at the long script of paragraphs and numbers. She sighed softly, rubbing her cheek. 

“We’ll leave you alone for a while, okay?” Aerith replied, “C’mon, Leon.”

“We’ll check up on you later,” Aseles felt Leon’s hand on her shoulder, then the large room expanding behind her. She turned to see that the duo was now gone, leaving her to attend to Ansem’s words. 

With some hesitation, but a clear goal on what she had to do, Aseles began to scroll down the sentences, feeling that this wasn’t text she was just reading, but that Ansem was walking her through what he was doing. Here and there, Aseles picked up his tone, oddly enough, proper and adequate; his placement of words seemed all too familiar, and yet, she knew he was beyond her reach now. There were terms she didn’t understand, and began to think that perhaps Leon _should’ve_ looked at this first. 

Thirty minutes passed painfully slow, several of Aseles’ fingers feeling numb from pressing down on the keyboard too much because of the constantly scrolling. She sat up straighter, realizing that she was finishing one of the files at least, but to her unfortunate luck, there was nothing stated about some system update, or any possible fixes she could do with the current one.

“Great,” Aseles grumbled, hitting the keyboard with a fist. Suddenly, the screen went blank, and Aseles froze from her stupid, hasty reaction. She stood up, pressing several keys to undo her action, but the screen would not obey to her command, “Oh crap.” Aseles groaned loudly, trying her best to keep focused and fix whatever she had done, but when she saw several files being opened, Aseles stopped pressing, and merely watched the chaos that was erupting on the screen.

Dozens of files began to open, others closed, and then a long script of words began to sprint upwards with several blinks of the awaiting keystroke. Faster and faster the process repeated, and when Aseles thought she completely broke the computer, it all stopped onto an image. Before Aseles could get a good look at it, the screen went blank for two seconds, and the files she had been looking at were back up, with the addition of a new one beneath all the rest. The whirring sound of a machine began to fill the room, and Aseles backed up to see that something was printing from the bottom of the keyboard. Aseles narrowed her eyes, watching the piece of paper reaching its end of its print. She held onto the edge of it, and saw the other edge drop from the keyboard’s possession. Slowly, Aseles turned the paper over in her hands, and her eyes stared bewildered at the image she was staring at. In the picture was her, a younger version, age…nine maybe. Her past self was sitting on the brick wall, so that the castle of Radiant Garden stood proudly behind in the distance. Aseles’ eyes scanned the copy of the photograph carefully, and her stomach dropped to see that the image of it was cut in half. A cut-off arm hung on her younger shoulders, but there was nothing to distinguish who it might be. It was just an arm…

Aseles sat back down, gazing carefully at the surroundings of the picture. Who…who took this? Was it Ansem? Who else would hide it in here if it wasn’t him?

Aseles swallowed roughly, folding up the photo and pushing the paper into her pocket. She felt a small glimmer of warmth on her thigh, but she shook it off as she progressed to open the new file folder that had sprung up. She double-clicked the icon, and out opened another picture to her surprise. However, this did not hold anything, but a familiar brick wall. Aseles tilted her head, raising a brow as she carefully inspected it; this was the brick wall below the Bailey, that headed to the Postern. Odd-

“H-Hey!” Aseles jumped in her seat, hurriedly standing and practically knocking her chair over. She looked to the opening of the Computer Room, seeing a gasping Cid. 

“Cid?” Aseles hasted over, rubbing his shoulder, “What is it?” 

“The...Subs,” Cid gasped out, his large back heaving slightly from his run, “They’re...here!” 

“Where??” Aseles quickly inquired. 

“At the Ravine!” Cid replied as Aseles rapidly skidded past him.

“Tell Sora, Donald and Goofy!” Aseles called out along the walls, rushing and almost crashing into the door at the very end. Aseles found herself bolting up the small steps of stairs, her thighs thudding and panting as she sprinted across the Postern. Making her way down the brick, covered walls of greenery, Aseles swung her arms to and fro, and called her keyblade across in front of her. Her keyblade flashed into view, but she abruptly skidded to a halt, and eyed the three figures blocking her way toward the Bailey. Great.

“Well, look at wat we have ‘ere, mates.” Standing in the opposition at the center was a figure in armor, as if he were some knight from the great spaces of the worlds. His black hair protruded through the crevices of his helmet from the front, and the lower half of his face was visible. He fashioned a great smirk, a small chuckle emitting from his throat. His shoulder pads slightly clanked when he did, but what put Aseles on edge was the keyblade the male held, along with the two others his team members held. The main lead’s in particular pretty much resembled that of an original keyblade, except with a rough and cruel image to it to make it seem like it was made out of some rusted metal. The head of it rested on the ground, while the handle twirled in his hand like it was some sort of spinning top. The other two seemed to be merely pawns, undecorated in their own suits of armor with plain, original keyblades of their own. 

“Looks like the otha’ keybear’ar decided to join us. Now it’s a partay!” the male’s British accent protruded roughly and bold, making Aseles stand firmer in her place. Were they going to try to break through her to get the computer? She could only guess so, with the way their reputation held among the residents of this world. 

“Who are you?” Aseles barked, her threat intensifying as the seconds passed. 

“Oi...chill lass. We have the whole time in the world, eh?” the front male chuckled, placing his keyblade over his shoulder. He tilted his head back slightly, looking at Aseles with his head pulled back slightly to the side, “Let’s see ‘ere...” The unnamed figure held up a finger, and pointed it toward her, “Aseles the Wise. Of course. Ansem’s kid.” 

Aseles’ eyes narrowed vastly, and she clenched her teeth , “How did you know that? Who are you?!”

“Heh, lil’ fiery, eh?” the male chuckled, making Aseles’ feet dig into the hard dirt beneath her. 

“I won’t ask again,” Aseles remarked. 

“Oh, where are mah manners?” the male shook his head slightly, “You may call me Chad. But I prefer if ya called us...Subs, right? Sounds catchy.”

“I highly suggest you leave,” Aseles warned once more.

“Oh, but your world is just so invitin’, with its poor security system, and all. Well, it’s practically beggin’ me and my lot to see what you can offer us!”

“You’re keybearers who hurt worlds and people,” Aseles tightened her grip on her only weapon, “All you’ll be getting from us is a damn, harsh goodbye.”

“Ahh, that’s the thing lass,” Chad lifted a gloved finger, and waved it to and fro, as if scolding Aseles, “I’m simply not goin’ anywhere until I get what I want.”

“What is it that you could possibly want?” Aseles began.

“I’m afraid you’re stand’ in the way,” Chad replied coolly. 

“You’re not getting past me,” Aseles growled, locking her arms into her body, her keyblade solid and ready. 

“Suit yourself. Well...get to it!” Chad waved his hands forward. On command, Aseles’ eyes constricted to see the two figures with Chad rush forward. Yup, perfect. 

Aseles held her ground as protected herself effectively against the onslaught of strikes and swings, kicking away one figure as the other proceeded to attack her. Aseles gritted her teeth, holding her shaken stance as she then turned her keyblade sideways against the neck of the other. 

“Fire!” Aseles shouted, and at her command, roaring flames circled the duo, and granted her a shout from the thrown, second male. Again, the other figure charged, and Chad was finally including himself into the fight, aiming straight for Aseles’ head. She ducked successfully, elbowing the second figure strongly and receiving a yelp from the girl within the armor. She now paid close attention to Chad, who seemed much stronger than the two, and was batting down against Aseles’ smaller stature. Aseles rolled to the side, but left herself open for Chad’s kick. Aseles staggered back, her back hitting against the rock wall. Her eyes darted front once more, seeing all three were charging. Aseles let out a mighty yell, and spun her keyblade like a windmill in front. The air around her darkened, and a rain of lightning cut across the ground, shooting all three attackers back. Aseles did a twirl in the air, her feet then meeting the ground roughly as her keyblade was tossed like a boomerang in a strike raid. Her weapon effectively hit against her foes, all three hitting the ground as Aseles regained her keyblade with a tough catch. She noticed the girl in the armor was closer to her, and Aseles rushed forward, gripping the front threads of the girl’s suit. Aseles hauled her upper body up, and pinned her back against the wall, the head of her keyblade now facing the girl’s concealing mask. Beneath Aseles’ feet was the girl’s keyblade, but upon Aseles stomp, the weapon cracked, signaling Aseles it was a fake indeed. Aseles shot her eyes up to the girl again.

“Talk!” Aseles ordered, “Who sent you!?”

“I-I can’t...say!” the girl gasped, inhaling from Aseles tight grip on her. 

“You will talk, or else the last thing you see will be my face!” Aseles threatened, pressing the head of her keyblade against the girl’s throat, “Who. Sent. You?!”

“It was him!” the girl quickly spat out, her fingers gripping onto Aseles’ arm, but Aseles did not budge. 

“Who is him!?”

“Ansem! That’s his name!” the girl Sub hollered, her voice shooting into Aseles’ face. Aseles froze, hearing a small crack go off from deep within her cerebrum. 

Her spine caught a cold shiver, but Aseles kept her grip firm, “You’re lying! I’m not playing games! Tell me who it is!”

“T-That’s his name! P-Please, I don’t know anything else!” 

“Yes you do! Now tell me-“

“SHUT UP!” Aseles flew back against the air, her back knocking onto the ground harshly. Aseles gasped, standing up shakily as she saw the line of blood forming at the front of her white shirt. She shot her eyes up, seeing Chad’s keyblade had made contact, but now Chad was not focused on her, but his female comrade. His helmet had been completely ripped off, and he held a pale complexion of skin. His dark eyes protruded through his sockets, carrying a little glitter of some other color in them; embedded it was, like a seeping poison. His strong cheekbones nearly ripped through his face, with his left eye now covered by his dark, straight locks. 

“What did you say to her?!” Chad yelled at the girl that was now minimizing her size from fear.

“I-I-“ the girl stopped, thrown back against the ground as Chad grew furious. She yelped from the strong kick that was sent to her stomach.

“Aseles!” Aseles shot her eyes back, her heart skidding in its rapid pace. She turned to see it was Goofy, Sora and Donald dashing down the slope, weapons drawn out. 

“Bloody hell!” Chad growled, “Let’s move!” He raised a palm, and at the wall drew out a dark crevice of a portal. Aseles quickly stood, charging in an attempt to stop them. Chad’s keyblade sparked against hers as the other male comrade began to hurriedly drag his female fighter forcefully through, now leaving Aseles to face Chad alone. 

“We’ll see each other reaaaal soon,” Chad scoffed, igniting a dark fog at Aseles’ face. Aseles coughed hoarsely, falling back from the small cloud of smoke and smog and landing on her side. She squinted past the moisture in her eyes to see Chad’s silhouette disappear, and the dark portal brighten in light, signaling its disappearance. 

“Aseles, you’re hurt!” Sora’s arm slid from behind her back, cupping her upper arms and armpits in one easy haul. Aseles found herself on her feet, looking down to see Donald’s wand was already taken out. A green, illuminating ring outlined Aseles’ body, and she looked down to see her injury close, and leaving nothing left but a small stain of pink on her shirt. Aseles was gently released during the process, and now her back was being rubbed by a very concerned Sora. 

“I-I’m okay,” Aseles nodded. 

“Who was that? The Subs?” Goofy questioned.

“Yeah, but we have to get moving, I think there’s-“ A hoard of yells and screams shot from behind, and the four quickly turned. A cloud of smoke was arising from the Market Place area, and Aseles could hear another explosion set off with the sound of glass shattering on impact.

“C’mon!” Sora gestured as he took off in a sprint, his group following behind. 

As she ran though, Aseles’ found her thoughts drifting once more, as well as keeping themselves locked at Sora’s leading feet. She said...his name was Ansem. No....he was dead. This sinking feeling was evolving, to a slight gap to now a large typhoon of a sick joke. It couldn’t be. It just couldn’t be..

Beneath the bottom of the stairs was nothing short of chaos and destruction; The houses were all free of any windows, and some bricks were now missing from the exterior of the structures. Debris and glass laid on the brick floors as Sora led the way across the maze, Donald close behind with Goofy eying Aseles worriedly. 

Along the brick pavement were thousands of glass shards, all reflecting the group’s feet as they darted around the tarnished tiles of roof and tossed doors off their hinges. Aseles couldn’t help but have the need to look at every part of destruction around her, to remind herself of her crumbling home. The group hurried up the stone steps leading to the Market Place, and what awaited was nothing but chaos. The shops were completely dismantled, all the signs rocking back and forth in horrible sways; the glass was ten times trashed here than the homes, and screams of the fleeing residents pierced Aseles’ guard.

“Let’s split up!” Sora announced as he demanded his keyblade forward. He made haste forward, and Aseles’ sharp mind had to clasp the fact that sound it met against was razor sharp and loud, because the opposing weapon was another keyblade. Aseles found herself alone, Donald and Goofy having seem to disappear out of thin air from her buzzing mind. 

“Come back here!” Aseles shot her eyes around, seeing Stan was running across the pavement, and an armored figure was giving pursuit behind him. Aseles dashed agilely, and her keyblade crossed against that of the girl’s keyblade. The girl pushed angrily forward, but Aseles stood her ground, and she struck her keyblade in a vile attack. Aseles gritted her teeth crossly, and the girl backed away, the top half of her keyblade sheared off clean. Aseles’ eyes widened, and she looked down to see that the top head of the weapon was shattered at her feet. It was a fake keyblade.

The girl wasted no time is running away, and Aseles turned around, helping Stan up to his feet. He seemed to be shaken at his knees, and his eyes shut to cleanse his panic from moments before.

“Hey, it’s okay,” Aseles reassured, 

“Aseles…” Stan voiced out weakly, his hands clutching the front of his chest. Aseles looked around the debris, unmistakably hearing the sound of closing portals. Several dark pools shut off their entrances, and all that was left was silence in the air, and the muttering and coughing of the ducking civilians of the town.

“Stan!” Aseles’ eyes caught wind of a woman rushing through the smoke, her lungs coughing practically in her hand. Her eyes locked onto Aseles and Stan, and she carried her pace across the tossed tiled and shards of the crystal mirrors. 

“It’s…ruined…” Aseles exhaled sharply, a tormenting tear reappearing at the center of her chest.

“Stan!” The young boy hurried forward, and his arms embraced his mother who now stood before Aseles a yard away. His mother practically knealt, her hands clutching Stan securely into her. Aseles relaxed her shoulders slightly, but they tensed the moments Stan’s mother looked up to her. 

“I-I was so worried…you saved him,” she replied with glittering eyes, “I misjudged you so severely, how could I ever-“ Aseles felt her weight drop, her knees hitting the floor and making her wince. Her hair dropped down to frame the sides of her face, and her eyes glared to the floor she hovered over. Her hands reached toward the fallen head of the keyblade of the girl’s, and with firm fingers, she inspected the damage of it. 

“It’s all…ruined,” Aseles gasped out, the edges of her eyes stinging, “they ruined it all…” Aseles shook her head, feeling Stan’s younger hand brushed the top of her back as Aseles continued to hunch in her seat. 

Why...why here. Why Ansem? Why did it have to be Ansem?

FFW:

Aseles’ mind had taken a new turn; cluttered, masticated, livid with constant silence. She drummed her fingers, stuffed her mouth, lifted heavy objects, everything to keep herself busy the past few days. Restoration on the town immediately started the next day, with only medical attendance following prior to the attack. There were only some injuries, but what struck a chord with Aseles was the fact that no one was killed. If these Substitutions were as bad as people said they were, causing destruction in the world, then why wasn’t anyone killed _during_ the attacks? 

Sora, Riku and Kairi were absorbed in their own theories on why the Subs were even in motion, but Aseles wasn’t planning on telling them what that one female had confessed to her when she encountered Chad. There was already too many assumptions to make, and Aseles’ trustworthiness was not something she was planning on endangering again. She was in already enough scuffles as it was, and honestly, she didn’t want to relive the past. Instead, Aseles did her best to occupy her mind and body, even though she had to distance herself from the rest of the gang. Riku immediately took notice, but he didn’t say anything whenever Aseles would sneak out the door while Sora talked with Kairi, Donald and Goofy. Aseles made herself fully available to help Leon in whatever it was, and he took it gladly. They practically were glued to each other side by side, with Axel occasionally sticking on the other end. 

Now, Axel had quickly caught on Aseles’ changed attitude, and he consistently probed Aseles for answers...and she hesitantly gave her thoughts to him. Aseles believed she could trust Axel wholeheartedly, despite their past quarrels. When she thought about it, Riku and Axel were very similar about their attitudes when it came to keeping secrets, but Axel was more open to discussing it with her than Riku was. As she did discuss it with Axel, Axel was slightly floored of Ansem’s revealed name in all of it, but he reassured her that it was probably a lie to trick her. As sad as it sounded, it was true that Ansem was in no possible way...alive. He couldn’t be. If it wasn’t him, then it must’ve been the work of the Xehanort, who seemed to have stated his name was Ansem to his minions to confuse the Hollow Bastion Committee. Aseles left it at that, and when she got into bed, she immediately fell asleep, while having a small glimmer of defiance on Axel’s words.

Maybe......maybe it was Ansem.

The next day, Aseles woke up with a slight headache, but made preparations to leave the house before anyone else noticed she was gone. With a quick shower, check on hygiene and breakfast, Aseles found herself in front of Merlin’s Study, and encountered Leon who was leaving with Cid. Surely enough, Cid broke from the group to head to the Computer Room, and Leon and Aseles made their way to the Market Place. Again, they didn’t share much, and instead Aseles got right into helping the clerks of the armory shop lift some large boards of wood and metal. As soon as Aseles had a free second of time, her mind began to pace, and was in a slight sprint throughout her thoughts. Again, looking at the destruction, Aseles was rationalizing her reasons on why the Subs would attack the town, and came to the conclusion that Chad’s words hung true: the world was losing its defense system, and Sora, Donald and Goofy’s unsuccessful attempt to contact Tron provided evidence. No one was sure why this was so, which was why Cid was constantly on it, but to no closer victory. It seemed the system was sealed out automatically, and no one was sure why. 

Something was amiss, but when Aseles noticed Stan was walking up to her while she was helping rebuild the armory shop’s sign in front in town, she realized that the Sub girl that she had stopped was actually chasing down Stan. But for what motive, what reason could she want with a small boy? 

“Hey, Aseles,” Stan greeted, averting Aseles’ mind to the present.

“Hey Stan...how are you?” Aseles replied, wiping the sweat off her forehead and temple with a swoop of her fingers. 

“I’m good, thank you!” Stan warmly smiled, “How about you?”

“I’m...okay,” Aseles nodded, rubbing her shoulder as she walked a bit away from the construction site to give some distance, “Helping restore some of the stores around.”

“It’s looking great,” Stan nodded, taking a step back as he held his chin to look at the new windows being placed with Leon’s instructions. 

“Thanks,” Aseles smiled lightly, feeling lightened since then. “What brings you out here?”

“I wanted to see if you could help me with something,” Stan replied, pointing to the other side of the shop. Aseles peered over, seeing grocery bags were set down carefully, avoiding any glass shards on the ground. 

“Well erm-“ Aseles blinked.

“You can go, Aseles.” She turned, seeing Leon was standing behind her, his white t-shirt covered with some splotches of sweat on the middle of his chest, and with his jacket and gloves off set off to the side.

“Are you sure?” Aseles asked as Leon rubbed the back of his head.

“Yeah, don’t worry about it here. We have it under control,” Leon advised, “You came to help earlier today, so you can take an early break.”

“Oh, okay then,” Aseles smiled, looking to Stan, “Guess I’m all yours.” Stan smiled as he signaled Aseles to follow. She did so, and the two picked up the bags of groceries, with Stan carrying one hefty one while Aseles carried one in each hand. The two set off to walk toward the other end of the Market Place, with a whole new side of residential houses that Aseles had not seen yet when she arrived in the world. Aseles followed Stan who led the way easily, all the while talking about how the restoration was going. Aseles was actually impressed that Stan was up to date on what was happening, but she guessed it was because her mom was on top of everything...considering how she scolded Aseles earlier when she first met her. Stan pulled his steps toward a small house, that held some crushed tiles on the roof, and some shattered windows. 

“Is this your home?” Aseles asked.

“Yup! C’mon!” Stan smiled as he led to the door. He knocked twice, Aseles actually afraid it might topple over by his strength; it looked like it was practically falling in. The Subs must’ve charged in when they attacked this part of the town. 

Aseles stood alert at the sound of footsteps on the other side, and her eyes caught the woman figure standing on the opened doorway. Her dark hair contrasted against her pale complexion, and her dark eyes somewhat shined, despite her body in the shadow of her house. 

“Mom, I brought Aseles to help,” Stan replied, making Aseles on edge. “Do you mind if she comes inside?”

“No, of course not. Come on in,” Stan’s mother held the door open as Stan stepped in, who pulled Aseles inside. Aseles felt the nervous prickling at the back of her head and neck, feeling suffocated in the house now. She was tugged to the left, where the kitchen resided. Inside, a brown, wooden table rested, only having enough chairs for three people. At the window sill stood small potted flowers, and they seemed new. A small, content fridge rested beside the counter and polished sink, and across the hall Aseles spotted the small living room, where a small table and a large couch rested to face toward the hallway. Against the far, right wall of the door were the stairs leading up, and Aseles quickly looked away as Stan’s mom reappeared in her view after having closed the door. Aseles, instead, headed to the table, where she rested the groceries beside Stan’s. 

“We fixed up the place before you arrived,” Stan’s mother answered, making Aseles look around again, “It was quite annoying to see everything out of place. Please, sit.”

Aseles blushed faintly of her words, and she pulled open a chair on the far end of the small table. Stan took the one on the center facing the window while Stan’s mother took the one on the far end, facing Aseles directly. 

“Again, I wanted to thank you for saving Stan the other day. I don’t think I thanked you properly,” the elder woman began. Stan was already opening one of the bags to take out an orange, and began to peel back the skin. Aseles looked to it, feeling like the orange; those dreadful peels, pulling back and revealing all this chaos in the pure core. 

“It’s okay, honest,” Aseles nodded, paying attention back to Stan’s mother. “You don’t have to thank me.”

“Is this town...everything for you?” she replied next. Aseles looked down at her curled fingers on the table. She sighed, blinking slowly. 

“The people living in it are important to me,” Aseles replied, “It was my home.”

“The world has changed, and it’s always changing,” Stan’s mother replied softly, “This world was once my home as well, and it still feels like it, after so many years of being separated from it.”

“You used to live here?” Aseles blinked, surprised of her revealing comment. 

“Yes, until that dreadful darkness consumed the world, and Stan’s father was still alive,” she breathed out. Aseles looked over to Stan, seeing that Stan had paused at his movements of eating his fruit, and a saddened expression overwhelmed his cheeriness. Even Stan too? It was probably the chair Aseles was sitting in. 

“I see,” it was the only thing Aseles could answer, “I’m sorry for your loss.”

“He was my other half...and now I’m a merely lost jigsaw puzzle,” she replied, “but Stan fills my empty side, so I have nothing to fret about. His father scarified very much to make sure we were safe, and that’s what keeps me going. He is always missed, but he always lives inside of us.” 

Aseles nodded again, “He must’ve been a great man.”

“How is the town’s status?” 

“It’s going good. There’s a lot of hiccups around, but Leon is making sure to get them fixed. I hope it goes back to fully functioning soon; we can’t risk another attack,” Aseles replied, crossing her arms on the table. 

“Leon is a great leader, and I know for a fact his efforts will see through to protect us,” she added. 

“Have you known Leon? For a long time, I mean,” Aseles asked.

“For some time now. That boy has not changed throughout the years, but he’s become a great man himself,” she added again. “Oh, mind my manners. You may call me Jacqueline.” 

“Oh, um, Aseles, but I guess you already....knew that,” Aseles cleared her throat, shaking Jacqueline’s hand briefly. 

“Aseles....” Jacqueline replied softly, “Your father was an extraordinary man, as well.”

Aseles shook her head gently, “I’m not sure about that anymore.”

“Oh....dear, why do you say that?” Jacqueline’s eyes widened slightly. Aseles took a breath as Stan continued to remain quiet in his seat, still eating.

“Ansem kept a lot of secrets, secrets I didn’t know,” Aseles replied. “Sometimes I wonder...if I ever even met him properly. He might’ve held some figure for others to look up to, but being close to him like I was...- It was like I never even met him, and yet, I did. Only briefly.”

“Perhaps, Ansem had his reasons,” Jacqueline replied next.

“Yeah, you’re not the first person to say that either,” Aseles sat back on her seat, and crossed her arms sternly on her chest. She looked out the window, seeing the sunset beginning to fill the paved street of little commotion, “Everyone defends that he was this genius, this walking brain among the worlds, but what I saw wasn’t that; I saw....a deceiver, a planner, a strategist. The more I think about it, he might’ve done some things for the right reasons, or to protect me...but what if they were only right to _him_?”   
Jacqueline folded her hands on her lap, her eyes gazing to Aseles carefully, “All I can say is...when you’re a parent, you do many things for the right reasons. You think it’s best, because of what you have already experienced. Maybe Ansem had poor choices, but you should never forget Aseles, that he cared for you very deeply, so very much.” Aseles found that familiar stinging at the edge of her eyes, but she swallowed back her words, and nodded briefly to Jacqueline’s comment. 

“Yeah...that’s what they tell me too,” Aseles nodded after a few moments of silence. 

“It’s starting to get dark, and I don’t want anyone to worry about your whereabouts,” Jacqueline gently stood, pushing her chair slightly to walk out of her space. Aseles rubbed off her cheek, and stood as well, Stan copying as he rested the orange peels on the table. Aseles smiled lightly, and she rested her fist out, and received a knuckle-touch from Stan’s own fist. 

“I’ll see you later,” Aseles replied.

“Yeah,” Stan smiled, “Take care.” Aseles headed toward the hall and to the door, where Jacqueline was waiting. She opened the door to gesture Aseles respectfully out, though Aseles stopped to stand in front of the older woman. 

“It was really nice getting to know you on the right foot,” Aseles nodded. 

“Likewise, Aseles. Make it back safely, okay?” Jacqueline advised, granting her a firm smile from Aseles. Aseles began to walk down the darkening paved street of brick, resting her hands in her pockets as she arrived at the Market Place. Aseles squinted her eyes across the area, and touching her feet upon the light posts set around. Her eyes wandered back and forth, feeling somewhat...on edge in this setting of the night. She gazed upwards to the sky, the twinkling of many stars filling Aseles with a sense of hope, and tranquility. 

“Feeling familiar to you now?” Aseles tensed, her body whirling around. She backed up to see a cloaked figure was standing yards away, almost hidden in the shadows of an alleyway. Aseles became defensive in her stance, her hands in fists, and ready to call forth her weapon. 

“Who are you?” Aseles instantly asked. 

“I don’t blame you for forgetting a familiar face,” the cloaked figure replied coolly, making Aseles narrow her eyes in question. Wait....

_“...I am here merely offering you a piece of the puzzle...”_ No....no way.

“How do you know who I am?” Aseles demanded.

The figure took a step forward, and Aseles noticed, to her ultimate surprised, that the cloak the guy was wearing did not fit him properly still. It seemed the guy had grown, a tad taller than she was...but...it felt as if he had not changed at all. His voice was more firm in place. 

“Why do you assume that I know you?” the male announced, extending his hands out slightly to show his defenseless state.

“For you to show up, after more than a year, in the same place and recognizing me does not seem so random to me,” Aseles defended. “Now, tell me who you are.”

“Everything will come back to you, Aseles.”

“Aseles!” Aseles jumped, almost screaming when she felt the pair of hands slap onto her shoulders. She reeled in place, seeing that Sora was the one who caught her off-guard. His smile was plastered on his face, but when he noticed Aseles’ ragged breathing, he dropped it.

“D-Did I scare you that bad? Oh jeez, sorry about that,” Sora chuckled. 

“Did you see him??” Aseles looked back, toward the alleyway. She took a couple of steps forward, eying the space cautiously. “No, he was right there!”

“Aseles? Who?” Sora automatically came forward, standing readily as he hugged Aseles around her shoulders.

“I....I don’t know,” Aseles shook her head, “He’s gone now.”

“You must be tired. Let me lead you,” Sora reassured, “I don’t want him showing up with you alone here.” Aseles resisted the urge to argue, and instead accepted Sora’s words. “Where were you?”

“I was with Stan, and I guess I didn’t notice that it turned dark so quickly,” Aseles replied, rubbing her forehead. “Lead the way,” Aseles quickly added. Sora looked to her, but he nodded back in agreement. As he securely held her, Aseles had to look back, had an urge to as she scanned the empty Market Place.

 

Who the hell was that?

 

THE NEXT MORNING:

_“Aseles! Why are you so slow!?”_

_“Hey! You got a head start! That’s not fair!”_

_“You gotta be quick next time!”_

_“C’mon! We’re gonna be late!”_

_“Hold up!”_

 

Aseles’ eyes flickered open, and she gazed upwards to the ceiling in slight contentment. Her hand reached to rub her entire face with the hand while the other traveled across the surface of the bed sheets, and toward the small table set aside. She felt the smooth texture of the lap, reached the switch, and lit the room in a dim light of yellow. She squinted her eyes to the clock on the wall, and she sighed of the grogginess that was consuming her. 

Pushing the sheets off, she bent to retrieve her tossed clothes, and take them into the bathroom with her where she showered and got dressed. She placed on each item slowly, afraid of disturbing a sequence of her thoughts if she put something wrong. After, Aseles headed out of the bathroom, ready to start her day. She headed downstairs, , noticing the empty, cleaned bowls on the rack next to the sink; it seemed she was the only one left in the house. 

Nevertheless, Aseles poured herself some breakfast, and took a seat. She chewed slowly, and finished at her own pace. She was washing her dishes, until the sound of the door creaking caught her attention. She looked over, but saw no one-

“GOOD MORNING!” 

“AHH!” Aseles’ hands lost her bowl, making it jump up from her hands. She reached in ridiculous lengths to catch it, and she literally stumbled against the floor to catch it perfectly in her hands. With a heavy sigh of relief, she stood up straight, but she nearly growled to the redhead that was laughing, supporting himself against the counter of the kitchen with a large grin on his face. 

“How many times do I have to tell you to stop sneaking up on me?” Aseles groaned in annoyance, placing a hand on her forehead as she placed her clean bowl in the rack next.

“Oh lighten up,” Axel waved a hand.

“One of these days, I’m going to have a heart attack, and it’s going to be all on you,” Aseles huffed out. 

“I could say the same, but alas, it would be cruel irony,” Axel chuckled. “Saw you slept in. Feel better?”

“After a scare like that, I’m already to a poor start,” Aseles mumbled. “What are you doing here? Babysitting again?”

“Actually, yes and no,” Axel lifted a finger, “I came here to pick you up, so we could head to the Computer Room. Leon wanted to see what you found on the database.”

“Alright. I’ll be sure to ask to punch you first before I show him,” Aseles replied, walking behind Axel who smirked at her retort. 

“Hey, I’ll be glad to repay the favor,” Axel closed the door behind and proceeded through the houses. Aseles scoffed at his remark, but she chuckled in return. 

“Can I ask you something?” Aseles began.

“Hmm?” Axel looked over as the two began to walk up the steps toward the Bailey. 

“Do you ever dream?” 

“That’s an interesting thing to ask,” Axel blinked. 

“I was curious, was all.” 

“Yeah, I do,” Axel nodded. “Usually trippy stuff.”

“Anything about the past?”

“Probably. I always wake up forgetting what I actually dreamt,” Axel replied as the duo now began to walk down the steps, and proceeded their way toward the entrance to the Postern. However, Axel and Aseles both froze, and they looked ahead to see four figures blocking their way. Aseles’ jaw clenched, and she immediately called out her keyblade from the threat that lay before her and Axel. Axel, in addition, called out his Chakrams in roaring flames, and handled them easily in tight grips in his gloved palms. 

“’Ello, it’s an honor to stand before you,” the boisterous voice of Chad rung in the air. His dark bangs rested on one side of his face, his consuming eyes gazing to and fro between Aseles and Axel. “Why, it seems like we only just met a couple of days ago!”

“You don’t know when to give up, do you?” Axel snorted, his eyes glowering at the Substitutions, and individually to Chad who was front and center. 

“Oi, but I could be saying the same thing about you, too,” Chad lifted two fingers, and directed each digit to Axel and Aseles.

“You will regret coming back here!” Aseles shouted with red eyes. 

“Hold it!” Aseles looked past the threat, seeing Sora, Donald, Goofy, Riku, Leon, Aerith and Yuffie jogging down from the Postern. Everyone had their weapons drawn, but the mere sight of seeing Chad so composed made Aseles uneasy. What was he planning? Surely he didn’t think he could stand a chance.

“Now that I have yor attention, let’s get down to tha nitty gritty, shall we?” Chad lifted a hand forward, toward Aseles and Axel’s direction, “Bring me mah leverage!” Axel and Aseles shot their glances back, and what Aseles saw horrified her enough to make her shake in place. Another Substitution, covered in entire armor, and towered the captured Kairi easily in their arm. Kairi struggled, grunting as she gripped onto the arm that was hooked around her neck. Her eyes shut tight from the compression, and immediately Sora shouted out to Kairi. The Substitution that held her held the head of his keyblade against the side of her head, instantly filling the air with caution. 

“You give me what I want, and I shall hand you your precious princess, aye?” Chad announced, “This is non-negotiable. No tricks.”

“What is it that you want?” Sora cut in harshly, the extra figures turning to face Sora’s group now. However, Sora stood undeterred, leading the group ready for an attack. Aseles felt her face sweat, and her hands clutched her keyblade tightly as she looked between Chad, and Kairi. Kairi’s eyes looked to her, restraining from crying. 

Chad took center again, his grin spreading on his face, “Hmm....not much, mate. We want...” Chad lifted his arm up, and with a direct point, his eyes targeted toward Aseles’ direction. However, the finger was not directed at her, and Axel’s stance froze, his eyes glittering dangerously at the digit that was pointed in his direction. “Him.”


	3. Arrival

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Well...What do we got here???? A new chapter?
> 
> ..Yeah, a freakin-why-did-this-happen overdue chapter. 
> 
> Okay, so this past semester was...a lot of work. And when I say a lot, I mean to the point I had to quit my job, because my education was more important than me making sandwiches for the rest of my life. It was really stressful, and this has been by far the only time in my life that I wasn't able to write anything. And it sucked. A LOT. Like this semester. That sucked...A LOT. 
> 
> So I'm glad to show the next part of this story! I want to thank everyone who is still reading this, because I could only guess some of you have lost your patience with me. I really am sorry about it, but I will try to stay on top of it this summer. I don't know about next semester, but I hope it's not as bad as this previous one.
> 
> And here we are....me taking this out at 2AM because you know...that's always the best time, right?? Anyways, thanks so much for taking a read, and checking out to see what's going to happen next! I made A LOT of changes for the upcoming chapters, so I hope you enjoy!
> 
> So yeah, that's it. Oh, and I love you guys... A LOT. yeah.....A LOT.
> 
> PEACE.
> 
> Sincerely,  
> Keys~

The silence boiled along the stone floor, creating a thick atmosphere that was raw and nonbelligerent. No one moved, but Kairi’s brief cough struck everything down to attention. Aseles stared, bewildered, between Chad and Axel. Axel kept his eyes on Chad, who seemed to be losing his patience while Sora’s group was on the fence of advancing. 

“You heard me. Come quietly, and we’ll leave everything as it is,” Chad answered with a smirk. 

“You must be out of your mind if-” Axel started.

“Nuh uh,” Chad’s finger lifted, and Kairi’s strained throat turned into a grunted whimper. Aseles took a step forward toward the captured girl, but the moment she did all metal exteriors of metal clanged, and Chad’s voice arose to a shout.

“Easy, gents! EASY,” Chad reassured in a strained manner. “Let’s not go doin’ anything…..stupid.” Aseles clenched her teeth, taking a step back as did Sora’s group. All keyblades pointed to him and the others, while the one who held Kairi kept their face toward Aseles’ direction. Axel was still staring at Chad, though he too was running out of options. 

“I’ll go…” Axel announced. Aseles shot her stare to him, though he avoided her gaze. Axel, what are you doing??

“That’s more like it,” Chad smirked, “Drop the weapons. _Now_.” Axel hesitated, but he relinquished his flaming discs, leaving Aseles baffled of his sudden surrender. “Over here,” Chad pointed to the floor in front of him, like a conquered owner. Axel set his jaw, and began to walk forward.

“Axel!” Sora replied boldly, shaking his head.

“Don’t deter the man. He knows this is best, eh?” Chad chuckled as Axel continued to advance, closing the gap further and further. No, what the heck was he doing? What the heck could Chad want with him? Aseles shot her stare toward Kairi, who was trying to keep her feet on the ground, but the further this trade was lasting, only her tiptoes were touching firm ground. No, by the grip of the wielder's hold on her, he wasn’t going to release Kairi. They were going to take them both. Kairi cracked an eye open, and she looked to Aseles for reassurance. Aseles slightly shook her head, and she tightened the grip on her keyblade visible enough that Kairi noticed. The redhead teen, inhaled, and it was there, Aseles knew she had to make her move.

“Now!” Aseles commanded, Kairi yelled as she swing a free arm up, her keyblade blasting and raining a cloud of ice around her. The wielder behind her let go, and Aseles spun in the air, tossing her keyblade across as Kairi ducked for cover. Aseles’ keyblade struck home, and the Sub crashed harshly to the ground. At the same time, Axel flamed his Chakrams in hand, blocking Chad’s oncoming keyblade. Sora’s gang charged, and a battle began to ensue. 

Aseles hurried over to Kairi, helping her stand, “Kairi, are you okay?”

“Y-Yeah,” Kairi nodded. 

“Aseles, watch out!” Aseles whirled her head about, but before she could defend, a blast of blue flame shot across, knocking the wielder off his feet once more. Aseles and Kairi turned to see it was Riku, charging toward the wielder. Kairi followed, but Aseles dashed back, heading toward Axel who was combating against the precise and brawn Chad. 

“Argh!” Axel shot a Chakram forward, Chad ducking his upper body backwards, his knees completely bend. Supporting himself on his keyblade, he ejected himself up again, and clashed against Axel’s second ring of fire. 

“Couldn’t cooperate, could you?” Chad hissed as Axel swung defensively in front. Chad growled and struck down, but Axel leapt back, making the male meet gravel instead. Chad backed up, Aseles and Axel both standing beside one another, and facing the dark-haired male. Chad sighed, resting the head of his keyblade on the ground. His other comrades broke off from their fights, and everyone was scattered, unmoving. 

“Then, another time,” Chad announced. He snapped his fingers, and a click of warping zooms echoed. Chad’s body fell right through the ground, and following suite were his supporters. Sora and Axel charged, but they were too late to follow, and were merely staring at the ground in anger. 

“What a coward,” Axel scoffed, calling off his spiked discs. Sora hurried past the two, directing his attention to Riku and Kairi. He seemed to be inspecting Kairi closely, asking if she was alright. She nodded in response, rubbing her neck tenderly. Aseles sighed in relief; things could have turned out for the worst if she didn’t catch the person who was holding her hostage in the face.

Axel turned to Aseles, grabbing her shoulder securely, “Are you alright?”

“Yeah, I’m fine,” she replied, but a wave of confusion washed over her face, and she gazed to Axel, “What did he want to do with you, Axel?”

“I don’t know,” Axel shook his head, rubbing the back of his head, “Beats me, really.”

“Whatever it was, it’s in need of concern,” Leon merged his opinion in the conversation, crossing his arms as he looked to Axel as well, “It’s best to not travel alone, from now on. Not until we can secure the town properly.”

“Which was why I was bringing you Aseles,” Axel added, “Remember?”

“Hmm, right,” Leon sighed, now directing his attention to Aseles, “Was there anything you found in Ansem’s Computer?” Aseles paused, and again, she felt the warmth arising at the base of her thigh. The tops sections of her fingers twitched, and she felt herself drawn and busied with that picture of herself. She had not mentioned it to anyone, and she would like to keep it that way honestly. She wasn’t sure what it proved, but she would rather deal with her past on her own this time, rather than drag her friends along once more. 

“Um, I did find this one picture,” Aseles replied. “It looked a lot like the brick wall beneath the Bailey.”

“The Bailey?” Leon raised a brow. 

Aseles nodded, “There was no caption or explanation for it. It was just a picture.”

“Why don’t we take a look then?” Yuffie questioned, patting Leon’s back, “It wouldn’t hurt, and it’s the best we got.”

“Right,” Leon nodded, “Alright, then let’s head over.” Aseles agreed and led, and the brunette male alongside her with Axel on the other. The others began to follow as well, Kairi thanking Aseles for her quick thinking. Aseles replied with a nod and smile, and looked ahead again as Leon walked up the small slope to enter the area of the Bailey. Leon paused with a tilt of his head, gazing along the brick wall as Aseles stood right beside, following suite of inspecting the stone exterior. 

“Yeah, definitely looks like it,” Aseles replied, walked ahead as her hands began to graze along the lines of the bricks. She narrowed her eyes, further probing and pressing against the stone. Was there a loose brick somewhere? Honestly, that’s all she had planned this far. If Ansem did have something hidden behind the wall, why did he never mention it to her? Or perhaps he did, and Aseles could simply not remember at all.

Aseles felt a brick push, and she stopped, looking down to see it was beginning to indent itself in from the straight line it was in. Aseles pressed further, and the brick instantly sank. The entire wall began to separate into halves, and Aseles stared into the dark corridor that was revealed. 

“That’s...new,” Sora announced, taking a step forward with Leon. The two peered in, oblivious to the fact that Aseles was feeling uneasy about the darkness and shadows of the path. She shuddered briefly, but quickly shook the feeling off. She held her keyblade in front, and sparked a small ember of light as a guide. 

“Let's get going,” Leon nodded, “Lead the way.” Aseles gulped, but nodded as she began to walk in, small torches of fire being lit behind by Axel, Sora and Donald. 

“Do you remember any of this, Aseles?” Yuffie called from behind. 

Aseles shook her head tentatively, “No, I don’t think so...I didn’t even know this was here..” Well, not the first time Ansem hid anything, anyways. She shook her head, and came around the bend of another corridor. Aseles looked along the ceiling, and saw the reflective glass tubes running along the grooves of the ceiling’s edges. It seemed that the place could be run on electricity, but the power source must be out. Finally, Aseles’ eyes caught sight of a sleek, silver panel, though it was motionless and still. Was this leading to another room of sorts?

“Some juice would be nice,” Aseles replied. 

“Up there,” Leon noted, nodding his head up. Aseles followed, seeing a bar of open circuits sticking out of a tube. Definitely would have to fix it in place. 

“On it,” Sora smiled to Aseles, and lifted his keyblade up toward the end. With a large spark of thunder, the entire hallway blinded with light, making Aseles shut her eyes and blink rapidly. Sora pushed the tube back in with the head of his keyblade, and he stepped back to reveal the opened door to Aseles. A small hiss emitted from the opening, and Aseles stepped inside.

The room was spacious and wide, the ceiling curved into an arc of several, steel beams. To the right were three doors leading into windowed rooms, the entire three walls of each room covered in cabinets for files. To the left, Aseles spotted a gigantic computer screen attached to the wall, seeming to be an older version of the computer in Ansem’s Study. A main chair sat in front of the keyboard set before it. 

“Whoa, check this place,” Yuffie commented as the others walked right in from behind. Leon and Axel headed over to the computer first, and Aseles watched them carefully. Once Leon touched a key, the entire screen sprouted to life, and a paragraph of words began to scroll down, seeming to be giving Leon directions on how to use it. It definitely seemed like an older model, but it looked promising- 

_“How are things, Xehanort?”_

_“Excellent sir. All data is put in and ready to be filed. All the experiments have been done and proved to be a success.”_

_“Nice work. Meet Aseles. Aseles, say hi-”_

“J-Jeez...” Aseles rubbed her head vigorously, shutting her eyes tightly. A spasm of stings began to jolt and hit against her forehead, making the teen bow her head and clench her teeth. Those voices...they were muffled and indistinct. Except all for that one name. Xehanort. Xehanort....was....here? Ansem’s apprentice? No, was this some...distant conversation in this exact location, or in general? Aseles couldn’t tell, and hurt to even try to think about it.

“Hey, Aseles?” Aseles felt a hand on her shoulder, and she looked to see it was Riku. His face was stern, but deep in the irises of his eyes, she could see something swirl, a curious interest of her sudden internal struggle. “What’s wrong?” he continued.

“I-I gotta go,” Aseles breathed out, and she began to hurriedly make her way out of the room, gripping the front of her bangs.

“Aseles? Where are you going?” Kairi’s voice followed, but Aseles said nothing, and picked up her pace when she heard the sound of rushing footsteps behind. 

“Hey!” Sora reached, and gripped Aseles’ shoulder. She paused in her quick stride, and she looked back, meeting those sky eyes, “Where are you going?”

“I can’t stay in there,” Aseles argued.

“What’s wrong? What happened?” Sora asked, but his hand lost grip, and Aseles was now jogging out from the hallway, and could only stare at Aseles’ back as she disappeared around the corner of the corridor. 

LATER, AT NIGHT:

The ceiling was morphing, twisting and turning in so many directions, Aseles was sure she was going to throw up, or spin forever in a nauseating cycle. She had slept when she got back from the underground system, because she didn’t want to think about anything else; all this was becoming unbearable to her mind, and her thoughts were having trouble on keeping track of what she knew and what she didn’t know. It all felt overwhelming and consuming, like Aseles didn’t have a say in it at all. 

She couldn’t stand to be in that room, if she knew nothing of what was happening to herself.

Aseles tossed off her covers, and dressed in her jeans and shirt messily. With a grumble she slipped on her socks and shoes, and proceeded her way out of her room with caution. She looked down the hall, seeing they were all closed; the others must’ve been sleeping already. She turned her head back, and looked at the clock. It was pretty much the dead of night. 

Slipping out of the house, Aseles crossed her arms, and proceeded her stride to head outside. She looked about the somewhat lit lamps of the streets, and followed her familiar steps to enter the Bailey. Up the stairs she went, and soon found herself facing the opening of the now very lit hallway. She inhaled, and then walked forward, making sure that she wasn’t being followed. It wasn’t long until she came across the steel panel. With an exhale, Aseles stepped forward, the door opening and revealing the grand room once more. She looked toward the middle of the room, seeing that Leon had set up a long table of sorts, with numerous chairs to make it ideal for a great number of people to sit. There, she saw Cid, who was snoring quite loudly, and had several pieces of paper sprawled across the table. He shifted a bit in his slumber, but began to mumble. Aseles carefully walked over, her eyes scanning the spread documents. They all held several numbers and codes, and Aseles could only guess that he had finally put some security around the town. It would make sense if no one else was here to keep an eye on him while he snoozed.

Aseles quirked her mouth, but dropped it as she targeted the computer on the other side. Carefully, afraid to wake up Cid, Aseles tiptoed easily over, and sat in the rolling chair that replaced the original. Aseles extended her fingers out, and she began to type, narrowing her eyes at the name she was typing in the search bar: Xehanort. Aseles entered, and almost instantly, a whole section of files began to open. Aseles moved the mouse, and clicked on a random file, and she began to read what appeared on the screen:

_With my colleagues by my side, we could not help but suppress the work that Ansem the Wise had tried to forbid us to continue, nor could we just stand and wonder mindlessly of what else there is to know about the darkness that lies in every heart of every being._

_We have taken the liberty of separating a person from their heart to create a vessel of sorts. These...Nobodies, will be the sole purpose of my research. They are the fuel that I need to start the spark I wish to expand on the worlds. No longer will I hold my opinion to myself, but share it with all who need to be Enlightened of the true purpose of Darkness.  
We’ve only revealed the ability of a single individual to have one single vessel for every individual, but perhaps there is a way to extend this, and have many vessels for one person.. What a discovery that would be. _

_We must’ve be hasty with this new finding, but I can only state that this discovery will lead to something a new. Something that I, myself, cannot even fathom._

_If only Ansem could see the extensiveness of my research, then he would be proud of me.  
-Xehanort_

Aseles felt her body tremble, and she could only bear the stillness for so long. No....not this again. Not this...Finding things again. This was...this was unbelievable. She could feel the world colder than it was before, as if the night had swallowed the sun, never for it to return. Was she learning things she shouldn’t have remembered, shouldn’t have come across? No, nothing made sense. Something was out of order, Aseles could feel it, and yet she couldn’t point out what it was specifically. 

“When does...this make sense?” Aseles breathed out, staring at the screen as her shoulders slumped, exhausted of their bold and ready exterior. “When do the secrets all end...?” She gritted her teeth, “I need to remember...I need answers.”

 _“If answers are what you want...”_ Aseles froze, and she swiftly shot her head around. She gasped, and the unsuspecting gloved black hand reached, holding onto Aseles’ forehead in a firm grip. Aseles felt...her body drained, and she began to fall to her knees, the chair rolling off from underneath her. Her mouth opened to call out for Cid, but her lungs drowned in silence, refusing to yell for any help. Her eyes flickered wildly, and her vision beginning to blur the dark figure that had snuck up behind her. 

_“It’s answers you will receive.”_

 

 

_Pulled. Pulled quickly under. She was being pulled under....deeper._

_Aseles groaned painfully, and she struggled to sit up. She fell back from the full force on her head, and her eyes strained to open properly. She knew she had...to get up._

_“W-What’s....going....” Aseles mouthed, and a sharp grip held her down on the ground. She coughed, and her fingers dug into the grass she was laying on. The air was thick and dark, but something was lighting a figure before her. Aseles attempted to pick up her head, but to no success at the moment. She knew she had to open her eyes, to say something. What if they were going to hurt her? How was she going to defend herself??_

_“We meet again, young wielder.” Aseles halted her movements, and began to leisurely regain her composure and strength. Slowly, Aseles began to ascend her face and eyes, and the figure that knelt before her was beginning to clarify, and sharpen in focus. Almost immediately, accepting that nothing bad was going to happen to her, the entire view cleared, and before Aseles was a man, with medium locks of chocolate hair and deep, stern, saddened eyes._

_His posture held broad shoulders, and his chest heaved slightly from the deep breaths that were recoiling in and out of his body. Who...who was this? His attire consisted of an outfit she had never seen, as if he were from some other time era._

_“We have met before,” the male replied, and he held out a hand toward Aseles. Aseles looked to it, then back to the young man, trying to recollect some sort of familiar presence of him. And when she looked at his eyes again, she felt this jerk at the back of her head, a buzz of a quick whip of pain bursting along her body. She grunted, and she gripped her head again, trying to sit up properly without slouching her head or shoulders._

_“Where....have I met you?” Aseles asked, strained._

_“With the help of a friend, I was able to contact you, after your exile,” the male replied, his fingers still extended. Aseles eyes widened, and she gazed among the male’s face; no, this was the armored man from before? Jeezes, things were making less sense now. How could this be?_

_“I-I don’t know who you are. You said you met me before, last time-“_

_“In due time. Now, please stand, for I have much to tell you.” Aseles swallowed, but she shook her head in defeat, knowing she needed to take the chance to find out what was going on. Her fingers extended out, and they gripped onto the firm hold of the man’s palm. Aseles rose to her feet, and she stood chest-level to the unknown warrior. Again, she looked up at him, but the familiar sensation of standing up to his presence...that’s what ticked her off. Something...was there. That single movement held something._

_“Who are you?” Aseles asked, narrowing her eyes._

_The male continued to hold her hand, and he bowed his head down, and rose it up to observe Aseles directly, “My name is Terra, and I am here to guide you on your journey.”_

_“Guide....me?” Aseles raised a brow, incredulously looking at this Terra, feeling her fingers try to retract back from his hold. However, the man held his tight firm, and his welcoming demeanor turned to that of a distressed expression._

_“As I have warned you before, a heavier threat is at play, and he will stop at nothing to gain ultimate goal,” Terra replied, “The battle is approaching...fast, and it won’t be long until Xehanort makes his move.” Aseles’ eyes widened by a fraction, and she rapidly curled her hand back, taking a step back from Terra._

_She shook her head, “It can’t be! How are you even here?? How can I even talk to you, after all this time?!”_

_“The explanation of my presence is not important; what matters is that you’re ready, Aseles. You must be strong for what is to arrive. It matters.....immensely.”_

_“Tell me who you are!” Aseles shouted in the night, her body tensing, “Tell me how you know my name!”_

_“...I am Terra, Keyblade Master and student of Master Eraqus. I have made mistakes in my past I do not wish to befall on you. I met you before, but you will not remember, because you do not have the memories to prove me right. Aseles, you are the holder of your destiny. Do not make the mistakes I made; a lot of lives hang in the balance, and you are of great importance of how this all plays out. Do not let this Keyblade War commence, for the consequences will be far greater than the rewards.”_

_“K-Keyblade....War?” Aseles swallowed roughly, the insides of her ears popping. A strong ring collided in the air, and Aseles was trying her best to stay focused. Those two words, they were so familiar. Where had she heard of them? Just...where???_

_“This...this doesn’t make sense!” Aseles whispered harshly, shaking her head, “H-How do you know who I am???”_

_“Aseles.” A firm hand gripped her shoulder, and she shot her eyes up, watching Terra intently stare at her. His orbs swirled of concern, and his lips parted, “Do not worry about the past, and worry about the future. Do not question how I came across your path, or how you came across mine. It will all be clear soon, but you must be patient. Rely on your instincts to guide you, rely on your keyblade to be with you. You must be prepared for what lies ahead, for no one can choose your destiny.”_

_Aseles flung her hands out, and she clutched onto Terra’s arm, who did not move from the sudden attack, “Th-This doesn’t make sense. I don’t understand any of it!”_

_The air stilled, and the cracking of a thousand shards of glass began to plummet onto Aseles. She gritted her teeth, and the colors before her began to smear and tear. She kept focus, and she felt that hand grip her shoulder tighter, and pull her closer._

_“There’s much more than you could ever know….about the weapon you’re holding in your hand.”_

 

“HAAH!” Aseles fell back, and she grunted loudly from the slam at the back of her head. She clutched her bruise, and looked around to see her head had hit the edge of the keyboard. She blinked rapidly, and quickly looked ahead, but...there was no one there. 

Wobbling on her feet, Aseles inspected the area vigorously, but she found nothing, except Cid sleeping on the table still, not having moved an inch. Who...who the hell was that?? How did they even get in, if the security system was up and running again?

Aseles staggered forward, and she gripped her face, mumbling incoherently. She shut her eyes as she made it to the hallway, and she guided her way through with her hand sliding across the wall. Her fingertips felt numb, and she couldn’t fully concentrate on her walk, or surroundings. A vigor amount of voices began to tumble and crash in her mind, and she bowed her head, proceeding to make her way through the night. Her head was hurting so much. Jeezes, what was...happening??

She managed to throw herself on her bed, and she curled in her sheets, her muscles and neck straining from the horrid stretch on her body. She bit into the pillow, and she exhaled shakily. The droplets of sweat began to trickle down her temples and cheeks, and the room began to fog in hot mist. Something was not right, something was far from right. 

Why couldn’t...why couldn’t she remember? Did...someone have her memories? Was it possible that they were not all returned??

This Keyblade War......Terra warned it was approaching. What....was that what Xehanort was after? 

Aseles didn’t know. She _just_ didn’t know...

THE NEXT DAY

SORA’S POV:

_He was sitting on the beach, his glance bright and warm from the sun radiating the sea shore before him. His toes sunk into the sand, and a smile stretched along his face._

_“Sora, you lazy bum!” Sora shook his head, laughing lightly of the distant memory._

_“Not a lazy bum anymore,” Sora replied, and he turned to the left, but when he did, the entire scenery turn to dark coal. Sora grew alarmed, and he bolted up onto his feet, his eyes looking around to find he was no longer at the beach, but in a dark void._

_He shook his head, “No, not again.”_

_“You know, it’s only a matter of time, right?” Sora turned his head, and there he saw a young man, with jet black hair, and scorching golden eyes. Sora froze, and he gulped harshly in his throat, making his apple throb in surprise. The male continued to walk forward, and he chuckled, staring at his own reflection at the brunette hero._

_“I think I slept long enough, don’t you think so, roommate?” the male chuckled lightly, crossing his arms._

_“I don’t know who you are, but-“_

_“Oh Sora, always trying to be the hero,” the teen giggled, waving his hand as he turned his back to Sora. “I think it’s about time I make an appearance. Waited waaaay too long for the old man to finally make a move.”_

_“Old man? What are you-“ Sora questioned._

_“Master Xehanort will be very pleased to know I have awakened within you. Looks like you might be his Chosen One, after all.”_

_“What are you talking about? Explain yourself!” Sora commanded, gritting his teeth._

_“In due time, kid. All we can do is wait.”_

_“No, you will explain it to me now!” Sora replied harshly._

_“Be patient Sora, you don’t want to ruin the fun, do you?”_

“Sora?” A knock on the door pronounced entry, and Sora was flickering his eyes opened, squinting through the dim light of his room. He sat up, looking about, though there was nothing out of the ordinary, or out of place. He narrowed his eyes as he looked at his lap, running his fingers through his spiked hair. What....who was that?

“Sora.” Sora shot his head up, taking notice of the voice that was awaiting his answer.

“Uh, yeah?” Sora coughed briefly in his hand.

“Get up and get ready. King Mickey is arriving soon,” Riku replied, and his footsteps retreated. Sora rubbed his face. Right, he almost forgot.

Sora sighed, and his back hit the bed, his fingers gripping his hair gently in fists. He looked to the ceiling, exhaling his thoughts out into the open, wondering who that was. It was....him but....it was someone entirely different...

ASELES’ POV:

Aseles was fully dressed, heading down the stairs and preparing herself a bowl of breakfast. She ate quietly, but she was quickly joined by Kairi who awoke next. The brunette looked up to the redhead, who smiled in her direction.

“Hey...you feeling better?” Kairi asked, serving herself some cereal as well, and taking the seat beside. 

Aseles shrugged, munching once, “I’m alright.

“Did you sleep well?” Kairi tried again.

“Could’ve been better. You?” Aseles asked, looking to Kairi briefly.

“Yeah, I slept alright,” Kairi smiled gently, and began to pay attention to her plate. A moment later, “Though, we got all worried. You left so hastily. I thought you were sick. Are you sure you’re fine?”

“Yeah....just-my head hurts lately. So, I need to lay down,” Aseles responded softly.

“You know, if there’s anything you want to talk about, we’re here for you,” Kairi added, brushing Aseles’ arm. Aseles merely nodded, and continued to eat, mentally hitting herself. 

How could she go to them for help when she herself didn’t know what was going on, or if there was anything wrong with her? Not, this wasn’t normal, but Aseles didn’t know how else to describe it. This...This Terra, there was no clear connection of how she knew this person, this Keyblade Master, he called himself. He knew her, but...no, it couldn’t be this again. All these strangers, knowing her name, and yet she didn’t know them. Chad, that mysterious guy in that black cloak, and now this Terra. Everything felt like it was coming together, yet it was all falling apart at the same time. 

“Did you know King Mickey will arrive today?” Aseles coughed her food back harshly, grunting once as she hit her chest to clear it up. 

“W-What for?” Aseles coughed gently.

“Leon informed us last night. But you were asleep, so,” Kairi replied, “From what Leon told us, he came to give us some more information on the Substitutions.”

“I see,” Aseles sighed, nodding gently. He finished what was left in her bowl, and made her way to clean it in the sink. She looked to Kairi again, “Do you know when?”

“Shortly,” Riku’s voice stirred the air. Aseles looked over to see him coming down the stairs, his eyes catching hers. “We should be headed toward Merlin’s Study, and from there we’ll go to the Postern.”

“Oh no, you’re going to eat something first,” Kairi stood up, pointing to Riku, “Sora too.” Riku rolled his eyes, but nodded.

“I guess I should head over then,” Aseles replied, rubbing the back of her head as she began to the door. She closed it gently behind, and walked her way through the section of houses until she came across Merlin’s Study. She rubbed her face roughly as she walked over, knowing she could’ve had better sleep if she didn’t go over to the computer last night. Whoever that was in the black cloak did a number on her.

Aseles approached the green door, knocked and opened it with a push. Inside, she was greeted with familiar faces, Leon walking over as he held her shoulder. Aseles felt somewhat relieved of his touch, knowing that she was actually consciousness enough to feel it. 

“Hey, you alright?” Leon asked. 

“Yeah, tired,” Aseles replied.

“Well, what did you think was going to happen? You knocked out since the afternoon yesterday,” Yuffie ruffled her hair next, making Aseles look up at her with a cracked eye. 

“Right, should have known better,” Aseles responded flatly, blowing her bangs out of the way.

“Donald and Goofy are already at the Postern with Aerith, so we should get moving,” Leon nodded. “Cid is in the underground system with Axel, putting in some last touches, but he’ll join us soon.”

“Alright,” Aseles nodded, “Lead the way then.” Leon moved past to head way out the door, and when the trio headed outside, Aseles was not surprised to see Riku, Kairi and Sora headed their way. 

“Rise and shine, kids,” Yuffie grinned. “Sleep good?”

“Lazy bum here wouldn’t wake up,” Kairi giggled, looking over to Sora. Though, when Aseles looked to him, he gave a nervous smile, a glint of some anxiety on his posture. Aseles raised a brow, and so did Riku, who seemed to notice. The group began to make way toward the Bailey, and Aseles slowed her stride to walk alongside Sora, Kairi on his other side with Riku in the back.

“You alright, Sora?” Aseles asked.

“Yeah, I’m alright,” Sora smiled amiably. Aseles kept her stare, and it was a second later Sora straightened his posture, and cleared his throat, “It’s nothing, really.”

“Well, I’m asking because, you don’t seem perky as you always are,” Aseles replied, holding his shoulder gently. Sora looked over to her, and he shrugged, “It’s nothing. Don’t worry about it.” Aseles didn’t buy it, but accepted that he wasn’t going to tell her...now at least. 

The group continued down the Bailey and up the trail. Aseles made sure to keep her eyes ahead, and did not dare look back to the underground pathway leading to the second lab. She honestly thought some figure was going to peek out from the shadows if she did. They soon arrived upon the stairs of the Postern, and walking up, Aseles saw the small ebony figure standing beside Donald, Goofy, and Aerith. Mickey turned around, a beam planted on his face. 

“Nice to see you all made it,” Mickey greeted as he held out a hand, shaking Leon as the tall man had to somewhat kneel to do so properly.

“Of course, your Majesty,” Leon replied as Yuffie saluted her presence. 

“Aseles, you alright?” Goofy walked over, holding onto her shoulders. 

She smiled and nodded, “Yeah, I’m doing better now, seeing you guys.”

“That’s good then,” Goofy cheered, hugging Aseles as she returned the embrace. 

“What, were you not feeling well?” Mickey suddenly walked over, raising a brow up to Aseles. 

Aseles shook her head, “It’s alright. It was a headache, I guess.” Mickey inspected her closely, but before Aseles could ask him anything, Mickey simply accepted it, and walked back. Well, that was odd.

“Nice to know we made the party.” Everyone turned to see Axel and Cid walking up the steps next, and Axel made it clear to walk straight to where Aseles was. He wrapped an arm around her, and he shook her slightly to cause her to look at him. He gave a curious glance, and Aseles merely waved a hand, indicating she was fine. Axel did not protest any further, and accepted her reply, which made her happy, actually. Instead, all eyes met Mickey now, who stood in front of the arc. Cid made his way to stand beside Leon’s other side, Yuffie and Aerith on the other. Sora, Kairi, Riku, Donald and Goofy stood toward the center, while Aseles and Axel took off to the side. 

“You’re all probably wondering why I decided to drop by,” Mickey began. “I have some new about the Substitutions, and it’s important we take immediate action to stop them any way we can. They’ve been invading several worlds, and it’s our job to make sure no other world goes under their control. I will go in search to see what else I can find about their motives, while the rest of you split up into teams.”

“Then, we’ll go as soon as we can,” Sora made a fist, nodding in approval.”

“Kairi and I will go to Destiny Islands then, to make sure everything is fine.”

“I’ll tag along, too,” Axel added in.

Aseles looked to Sora, Donald and Goofy who smiled in her direction, “Sticking with us?”

Aseles smiled, “Yeah, why not?”

“Then the rest of us will continue to improve here, and make visits to Traverse Town,” Leon replied as Yuffie, Cid and Aerith agreed. 

“Just like old times, huh??” Sora hurried over, and slouched an arm over Aseles’ freed shoulders. She chuckled, soon feeling Donald and Goofy cling from behind as well. 

Mickey turned to the four, “The first thing you should do when you head out is check with Yen Sid. He will lead you in the right direction.” 

“Cid and I will prepare the gummi ship for you,” Leon answered, though Cid mumbled loudly in response, groaning from the added work on his agenda it seemed. 

“We’ll head to the Market Place to grab supplies,” Sora gave a thumbs up. 

“Let’s get going then,” Mickey encouraged, making Sora, Donald and Goofy shout in agreement. Aseles scoffed with a smile, but it quickly dropped when she felt her arm being tugged behind. Axel was leading her to an isolated section of the platform, and he was rummaging in his pocket for something. 

Aseles blinked, “What’s up, Axel?”

“I want you to take this…” Axel retrieved his hand out in a fist, and Aseles opened her hand beneath his. His lean fingers released, and a small charm fell in her palm. Aseles couldn’t help but compare it to the figure of one of Axel’s Chakrams. It was colored in complete silver, and in the middle of it was the Nobody sign. It made some sort of spinning top at the tip, seeing a small chain connected to it. 

“Whoa. What’s this for?” Aseles questioned.

“I made it myself. It increases your strength in a pinch,” Axel winked, placing his hands on her shoulders. She gazed at him. “Even though you don’t need it.”

“Heh....Thanks, Axel.”

“Come back safe and sane,” Axel replied, “If there’s anything you need to talk about, you know I’m here for you.” Aseles dropped her gaze down to stare at the charm, and then back up to Axel. 

“Axel-“

“Aseles, let’s get going,” Sora’s voice chimed. Aseles looked over, seeing Sora, Donald and Goofy beckon her over.

“I’ll see you around,” Axel smiled, ruffling Aseles’ hair as a goodbye before walking over to talk to Riku and Kairi. Aseles stared after him, but she sighed in defeat, and placed the charm in her pocket, along with the piece of the printed photo she carried of herself. She headed over to follow her group, giving some last farewells to Riku, Kairi, Leon’s gang, and finally stood before Mickey.

“Be careful, Aseles,” Mickey warned.

“You too,” Aseles finished. The two continued their stare at one another, Aseles’ eyes narrowing at the mouse. Why did it feel like Mickey was hiding something? There was something in his stare...she couldn’t point it out. 

She felt a tug, and Sora broke the trance. He and the other two waved to Mickey who smiled, but once they turned, Mickey’s smile dropped as he watched Aseles from the back, a deep exhale leaving his small chest. It was there, Aseles did not see the extreme worry that hit his face, and Riku heading over to stand beside him.

“You think she knows?”

“That’s what I’m afraid of,” Mickey whispered back.

FFW:

 

_“It’s not too late.”_

_Aseles looked around the area, finding herself in an outstretched land, on a canvas of a dark gray void. The rows of keyblades dragged as far as the eye could see, engulfing her in a river of blades and chains. The sky was gloom and dull. The clouds roared in silence, and Aseles could feel the electricity surge through them._

_She stretched out an arm forward, but when she looked down, she saw it was covered in a suit of armor and chainmail. Her shoulder was board and hard, and the armor on it was easy to maneuver and command. But, this wasn’t her body. It was too tall, and something dark was running along her fingers tips. No, what was this?_

_“Terra!”_

_Aseles quickly turned, seeing a young woman on the floor, her blue hair sprawled over her face last chopped hay. Her fingers were digging into the ground and her eyes targeted toward Aseles in such a glower, it made her almost flinch in place._

_“Aqua!” Aseles was finding her running forward. Her large chest heaved, and she lunged her arm down. The woman abruptly let go, and a piercing scream filled the air. Her body was falling down the chipped floor of dirt._

_“It’s not too late to do what’s right, Terra.” Aseles’ head spun around, and they glared at a bald man, conquering his old age in a straight posture in a black cloak. The inside of Aseles’ chest raged, and she yelled with a battle cry, charging._

_“You!” Aseles leapt, but the ground rose in a forceful haul, making Aseles’ body skid forward onto the ascending, trembling platform of ground._

_“Why couldn’t you save me, Terra?” Aseles’ eyes wobbled in her sockets, and there stood a blond boy, with waved hair to the side. Roxas??_

_“Ven!” the bold voice in Aseles’ lungs cried out._

_“It’s your fault! You shouldn’t have strayed from the Master! Why did you leave me?!” Aseles’ large body was thrown backwards, and she gasped as the whips of air began to make her tumble back toward the ground. She tried to regain her balance on her feet, but Aseles could feel every bone in her body turning to stone. No, she had to get up! She...had to....get up!_

_“Why did you try to escape the inevitable. Foolish Terra, you are now my vessel.”_

_“N-No...I won’t!” Terra’s voice echoed as the air began to darkened in color, suffocating Aseles’ lungs the farther she dropped. “I will never give in!”_

_“Oh, but you already have.”_

 

“UGH!” Aseles shot up too quickly, and instantly her view began to spin. She groaned and fell out of her seat, the belt clutching at her ankle as she stared at the ceiling of the large cockpit. Her neck leaked cold sweat, and her arms shook that she couldn’t push herself up to sit up. Instead, Aseles tried to regain her breathing, and push away the horrid images in her head. 

Was she....did she dream herself as Terra? Ven? And A-Aqua? Who...who were they??

Aseles lifted her gaze, seeing Goofy, Donald and Sora snoozing in their seats. Goofy mumbled as his olive nose wriggled gently, a gentle smile playing on his face. Donald quaked in bubbling grumbles, and Sora stretched his shoulders over the arms of his chair, his belt keeping him up and his lower body slumped out. It was...like old times, really.

Aseles stood up, holding onto her shined chair. Her eyes gazed along the cockpit, her eyes catching sight of the passing stars rolling over the rounded, thickened glass windows. She walked to stand before the control panel, and her head dipped back to engulf herself to the view of the galaxy. 

There was a reason...there had to be an explanation why this was happening to her. But...Aseles did not know. She just didn’t. The look of this Ven’s face....this look-alike Roxas. And...then this Aqua. Was it all...real? Or was it a figment of Aseles’ imagination?? What was....was Terra now in her mind? But how? If this was all real, how was he able to make himself present in her mind? What was causing this?

Aseles’ eyes collected ahead in focus, and it was there, she saw the familiar world rotating slowly in view. Twilight Town. An ecstatic sensation was brewing in her blood, and Aseles couldn’t help but feel something important was now fast approaching.

“Hey, Sora,” Aseles walked over, and shook Sora’s shoulder gently. The teen stirred, and Aseles tried again, receiving blinking eyes in her direction, “We’re here.”

“Wha?” Sora grunted as he sat up properly, taking off his belt and stretching to stand. Aseles blinked at his somewhat taller height, somewhat unaware of his three inch growth spurt. Sora relaxed his arms, and he dropped them at his side. His sky orbs caught Twilight Town in the distance, and he smiled. 

“Well, what do you know,” Sora began, crossing his arms. “Looks like we made it.”

“Got here pretty quick,” Aseles smiled, tilting her head slightly.

“You ready?” Sora looked over to Aseles. 

She looked back at him, and she shrugged, exhaling with a nervous smile, “Made it this far. One more adventure wouldn’t hurt.”

“C’mon, we’ll stick together,” Sora lent out a hand, and Aseles looked to it. She nodded gently, and she laced her hand into his, their thumbs crossing on top of each other in agreement. 

“Yeah, I know,” Aseles replied softly.

“Then, let’s promise something.”

“Promise what?”

Sora’s smile softened, and he tightened his hold on Aseles’ fingers, “Promise, that we’ll stick together, no matter what.”

Aseles paused for a moment, letting his words turn into pictures in her mind; a scene of an ocean, blue sea, and the sand beneath her feet. She could feel the grains along her fingertips, and the wind blowing her bangs back to reveal her entire face. 

She smiled at the thought, and she nodded, “Yeah, you bet.”

Moments later, Sora set the gummi ship to land, and the group recollected themselves inside the exact, same Train Station from so many months ago. Aseles felt the soft breeze emitting from the opened gap of the tracks on her right, her tiptoes rising her up to feel the warm atmosphere of the shades themselves. Her eyes looked ahead to see Sora stretching his arms up once more, Donald and Goofy gazing along deserted area of the trams. Aseles hurried over, standing beside Sora, Donald and Goofy. Although, Sora seemed to be walking ahead, facing the window doors toward the town outside. Aseles looked toward the ticket panel, though she narrowed her eyes as she neared closer. Cobwebs seemed to be covering the window, and Aseles grew uneasy of the sight. She looked back, seeing that the trams were all stationed inside already. Was the station out of order?

“Why don’t we go see what the gang is up to?” Sora smirked, turning his head back.

“But we’re supposed to head to-“ Donald began.

“Who’s in charge?” Sora sang out, raising a brow to Donald. Donald sighed, slapping his forehead while Goofy chuckled. 

Aseles blinked, but nodded, “It would be nice to see how they’re doing.”

“Then it’s settled!”

The air was soft and melodic, but there was something lifeless in the air, in the desertion of the streets. The dust seemed to roll across Aseles’ ankles, and she was unprepared for most of the silence that was following. No one was outside. Unusual. 

“Aseles, c’mon!” Goofy called. Aseles recollected her feet, and began to hurriedly following behind the trio as they began to head down the pathway through the apartments and shops. However, as they continued to the bottom of the Tram Common, Aseles couldn’t help but stare at the boards of wood shutting every inch of opened doors and windows. Not even a whisper of the air was able to penetrate through them, or give Aseles any sign of life. 

“What’s going on?” Sora’s eyes scanned the area, his right arm tensed with his fingers open to call out his keyblade.

“Let’s go check the Usual Spot. Maybe Hayner, Pence and Olette are there,” Goofy suggested.

“Right...” Sora led the way once again, taking the shortcut of a familiar alleyway. But when Sora pulled back the cloth of their hangout space, there was nothing there. It was vacant, with only pieces of paper left of any evidence of life.

“This doesn’t feel right,” Sora breathed out, rubbing the back of his neck.

“Maybe the Sandlot,” Donald added, “Let’s go see if anyone is there.”

“But, what’s going on?” Aseles asked, her eyes inspecting the hastily ripped pieces of parchment. 

“Let’s hurry,” Sora urgently ordered, and cut through the dimmed shadows of the alleyway. His feet carried him, almost flew his body down the set of staircases leading down to the Sandlot. Aseles hastily followed behind, but like before, the area was deserted, with broken wood among the ground, and torn rags and cloth bundled at the corners of worn buildings. Had this world been completely deserted?

“Hayner! Pence, Olette!” Sora cried out, cupping his hands at the sides of his mouth to echo his shouts more fluently across the air. Aseles swallowed roughly, her arms flexing to swing her keyblade out at any moment. Why did she feel that something was nearby-

The ground rumble, and a gust of wind kicked upwards, throwing debris into Aseles’ face. She coughed hoarsely, and she blinked her eyes clean to see a large blob of black, having fallen from the rooftop of a nearby building. The group rapidly formed an arc, all weapons drawn out as Aseles’ eyes widened at the spectacle unfolding. 

The monstrous beast hunched forward with large knuckles, its entire body covered in spikes that it looked like an enraged mix of a gorilla and porcupine. It held a triangular-shaped head, and it roared viciously that it literally made the air tremble. Its hind legs bent downwards like some sort of cat, and a long tail whipped back and forth behind it. It’s beady yellow eyes towered as high as a lamppost, and they targeted Sora first. The beast let out another mighty roar, its fangs sharpened and white as bone. At its chest ran a thin slab of grayed skin, reaching down to its abdomen with a certain symbol depicted on its body. Aseles couldn’t catch it, due to the enormous leak of Darkness around. Whatever this thing was, was not near friendly.

“What is that?!” Donald quacked and quaked, his feathered hand gripping his wand forward in the offensive.

“You sure you wanna know?” Sora called back as the beast pounded its fists against the ground. “Split!” Sora ordered. Aseles swiftly darted to the right, her head whirling back to see the creature had lunged, cutting the group in half. It abruptly lost footing, and its forehead smacked against the brick wall. It howled in agony, but the piercing noise was enough to slam Aseles’ knees to the ground, making her clutch her head tightly. Damn it!

“Aseles, watch out!” Goofy called out, and Aseles swiftly shot her keyblade to the side without looking. 

“THUNDER!” The sparks of lightning shot hastily forward, and Aseles could feel the ground quake harshly from the fall of the enemy. Aseles shook her head to refocus, and she was back on her feet, advancing with Goofy at her side. The two struck firmly against the head of the creature, and Aseles could feel every drip of Darkness sliding off her keyblade and oozing to the floor. She grimaced and she and Goofy backed away. What kind of Darkness was this??

“Watch out!” Aseles’ eyes widened, but she and Goofy were too slow to dodge the oncoming tail. It whip with spite, and Aseles grunted loudly with Goofy as they were knocked back a few yards. She hit the ground hard, but she regained her composure, helping Goofy up as Sora and Donald took the next chance to attack. 

Donald showered a set of flames ahead, catching the creature in a vortex of fire. The beast recoiled with a lunge, Donald sidestepping and rolling out of the way. Sora charged front and center, clashing his keyblade strongly against the being. It pounced sideways, and its body twirled in a perfect circle, but Sora was prepared and jumped, the smashing tail missing him. Sora leapt and struck his keyblade downward, an array of light attacks plunging into the beast. However, the attack was short-lived, and Sora was abruptly tossed back, hitting the ground. To Aseles’ shock, the Darkness that had clung to Sora’s keyblade did not loose, and instead it began to swim down the neck and into the handle, entrapping Sora’s hold onto his keyblade. Sora gritted his teeth, and he seemed to try to release his hold on the keyblade. A spark of dark flames was beginning to engulf Sora. The creature pounced once more, and it towered Sora, its fangs snapping at Sora who was trying to kick it off. 

“Sora!” Goofy’s shield zipped across the air, and it caught the head of the creature. It hollered in anger, and redirected its attention to Goofy and Aseles’ direction. It began to chase, and Aseles readied herself...but what she wasn’t prepared was the rapid swoop of green before her. 

A figure stood in front of Goofy and Aseles, and he redirected his arm out to the side. His fingers extended, and a sparkle of bright light began to transform and manipulate in his palm. The green hood that was once over the figure’s head dropped, and Aseles stood stunned to see it was no one another than Hayner, holding a keyblade.

Colored green, the handle was shaped like an oval, with a set of sharpened thorns and waves combined to give the keyblade’s handle an ruthless look. At the base was a swinging chain, with a circular badge charm radiating in place. A strip of dark, green metal cut through the back neck of the keyblade, and when Hayner tossed it through the air in a spin, the mix of the two colors blended to create a mixture of a metallic finish. The idealized weapon sent a spine-chilling crack against the creature, and it fell on its side from the abrupt fling of Hayner’s perfect toss. Hayner shot forward in a sprint, catching his keyblade back in hand. The fowl beast regained its footing, and it swung its knuckles across. Hayne dodged every single one, and with a mighty slide of his feet, the head of his keyblade struck into the symbol on its abdomen. The creature gasped in a muffled scream, and to Aseles’ astonishment, it fell back, twitching on the ground. Hayner firm eyes locked onto the handle of his weapon, and he pulled it out with a secure jerk. The creature lay no more, and the Darkness that was surrounding its body began to vaporize into the air. 

“H-Hayner...” Aseles took a step forward, unbelieving her sight really. This was...Hayner right? When the male turned, his stature was out and upright, and his eyes almost shined like amber in her direction. He wore a green jacket to replaced his vest, and his palms were wrapped in slicked gauze. His face had matured somewhat, structured and stoned. His hair was cut to appear spikier, but what gave it away as Hayner were the same pants of camouflage. Yes...this was...Hayner. 

“Long time, no see, huh?” Hayner winked, giving a thumbs up to Goofy and Aseles.

“Well-“ Goofy was cut with a shout from Donald, who was sprinting away, and accidentally crashing into Goofy.

“D-Donald?? What’s wrong?” Goofy asked. Donald immediately pointed, and Aseles and Hayner shot their eyes behind...and what Aseles saw was beyond what she wanted to face now. 

“S-Sora?” Goofy called out, gulping loudly. 

Sora’s body walked, seeming to be possessed. His spiked hair flowed with strands of ebony, and it swarmed Sora’s entire exterior. He slouched somewhat forward, and a pair of menacing, golden eyes was staring to Aseles and the others. His body took another step, the keyblade’s head dragging across the ground, making Aseles’ wince of the metal scraping. At the handle was the still remaining Darkness from the enemy Hayner just vanquished. But...why did it linger??

“Sora?” Aseles held out her hand, the other gripping her keyblade tightly. Sora didn’t respond, making her question if the keybearer was even in there. His eyes glowed in the shadows of his face, and his jaw tightened in a threatening manner.

“Hold on!” Hayner reached forward, pulling Aseles back hurriedly. Sora halted his movement, his eyes now looking to Hayner, and to the keyblade in his hand. 

“W-What do we do??” Donald shook Goofy from the side, and Goofy could only stare at Sora in utter worry. What the hell _were_ they going to do?

Aseles swallowed, and she pried off Hayner’s hand, who was looking at her anxiously, “What do you plan on doing??”

“Just give me a sec, okay?!” Aseles advised, exhaling as she faced Sora again. Sora’s direction leisurely moved to Aseles who took a step to him. She extend her right hand forward, and she relinquished her keyblade to sparkles of light. She opened her arms willingly, and she took another step, now having Sora’s close attention. 

“Alright....come on, Sora...” Aseles began, breathing deeply as Sora advanced slowly. “Relax...alright? Hayner is here; remember you wanted to see him?” Sora’s feet halted, but his intent glance did not waver, keeping locked onto her. “You need to calm down, and you have to think rationally, alright? Relax....we’re your friends...remember?” Sora’s chest heaved deeply, and the grip on his keyblade loosened gradually until the weapon left his grasp, and clanked to the ground. It dispersed, and Sora’s features were beginning to brighten back to their normal color. 

“That’s it....easy,” Aseles continued, taking a few steps, her arms stretching outward. Her fingertips passed by Sora’s shoulders until she was now right in front of him. “We promised, to not let anything get in between us.” Sora’s shoulders slouched, and in a quick swipe, the entire Darkness that surrounded his body was gone. Aseles quickly caught him, preventing him from falling onto the ground. She kept him upright, but it was a second later she felt Hayner and Goofy help him up until Hayner and her were able to wrap his arms around their shoulders.

“What was that about?” Hayner’s eyes caught Aseles. 

She looked to him, but she shook her head at the old friend, “I...don’t know.”

“Did he say anything was wrong with him?” Donald asked tersely, his eyes catching Aseles and Goofy.

“He seemed fine when we left,” Goofy commented in. Aseles’ memory wandered back to the moment she saw him outside of Merlin’s Study. Was...Was Sora fighting something inside of him? Without telling anyone?

“It’s best if we take him back to the Old Mansion,” Hayner went forward, gesturing Aseles to follow, “This way.” Aseles did so, making sure she wasn’t straining Sora’s arm. Donald and Goofy followed behind, weapons drawn to prevent any other enemies from approaching. Aseles looked back to Hayner, who was looking ahead, focused on the task in hand. She had to ask.

“Hayner, how do you have a keyblade?” Hayner scoffed lightly, seeming to gather his words as they continued their walk through the crack on the wall. The abundant forest consumed Aseles’ sight, but she kept her attention to Hayner, who was paying attention to where he was going. 

“It seemed so long ago when you guys were here. When it all happened....Seifer and his gang lost to them big time, trying to be all...macho about it I guess. He thought he could take them on, and when I rushed in....” Hayner stopped. “I don’t know why I have it; I didn’t ask for it.”

“...I see,” Aseles nodded gently, feeling a tinge of nostalgia grip at her throat. In truth, she never asked for it as well, and she didn’t want it. It was something she still couldn’t comprehend, versus Sora who felt very confident in having his to protect the people he cared about. But...Aseles knew that not everyone could have one, so why her? Hayner seemed to be a better fit than she. She could imagine exactly all the running thoughts growing through Hayner’s mind. 

“They say a keyblade chooses its master,” Aseles began.

“But I didn’t want it. None of it,” Hayner stared at the floor, watching his over some sprouted roots of the oncoming trees, “No matter how many we destroy, they just keep coming back, stronger than before. What use is it if they don’t stop coming to terrorize the town?” Aseles said nothing, and looked ahead. Soon, they arrived at the iron gates of the Old Mansion with Donald and Goofy walked ahead to open them for Hayner and Aseles to walk through. Sora was still out, and Aseles could only hope he was recovering himself as he dozed. The sun’s rays splashed across the oncoming steps of white stone, and Hayner knocked on the door, waiting patiently.

“Are Olette and Pence inside?” Aseles asked.

“Yeah,” Hayner nodded, adjusting Sora’s arm. 

“What happened to the rest of the town?” Goofy questioned, looking among the trees of the forest behind them. 

“No one comes out anymore,” Hayner answered briefly. The group waited, and the sound of soft, rushing footsteps held Aseles’ eyes to the door. A set of locks were released, and in the opened doorway was Olette herself. Her brown hair was tied in a high ponytail, and end of it touching the upper parts of her back, slightly swinging from her energetic pull. Her eyes gleamed jade, and she wore an orange, sleeveless tunic that reached her waist. The collar of it was that of a worn-out turtleneck, and beneath her legs were paired in cream leggings. They sunk into a pair of white-yellow boots that reached to the middle of her lower legs. On her wrists, she wore checked wristbands, looking very familiar to Aseles. 

“Oh! Aseles, Donald, Goofy, and....Sora?” Olette’s energetic behavior dropped to uneasiness, “What happened? Is everyone alright?”

“He fell unconscious is all,” Hayner replied with a soft smile, “He’ll be fine.”

“Get in, get in!” Olette advised, almost tugging Donald and Goofy in once Hayner and Aseles settled Sora inside. The door was locked in a song of clanks of metal and chains, though Aseles turned her attention to the main foyer of the mansion. 

The destruction that was once left in the middle of the room was replaced with a long table of hard oak. It held many chairs, and around it sat a set of recognized people. The windows at the center-end of the room still showed the small garden outside, holding a few flowers and some fruits it seemed. The carpet was a bit more faded and worn, but overall, the place looked a lot more cozier than Aseles’ last visit to it. 

At the table sat the familiar Pence, and he quickly stood with a beam on his face. Pence’s face was still round, but he had seemed to grow a bit taller than Hayner. His same headband kept his hair back from his face. His body had adjusted to his height, and Aseles knew he had more build. He wore loose, blue pants, and a white shirt with a black, cut-sleeved shirt on top. Beside him was an empty chair that was pulled out, and Aseles guessed that were Olette was. Following the line, Aseles caught sight of the arrogant-looking Seifer, who scoffed at their presence. 

“Look who decided to show up,” Seifer scowled visibly, crossing his buffed arms on his chest. A silver chain rested around his thick neck, and his eyes pierced coldly to the group. Beside him was the practically bared Rai, standing taller than anyone in the room. Clearly, he was trying to make an intimidating impression, hands on his hips with his built chest puffed out. Fuu, the slender girl of the group, was somewhat shrouded because of her grown locks, her bangs sweeping and nearly covering one side of her face. Her cargo shorts had been replaced with dark leggings, with a pair of high-top shoes to replace the tennis ones from before. Last, but no least, was the little mage, named Vivi, if Aseles remembered correctly, who was now carrying so many pins on his hat that Aseles knew he was going to start making a collection soon.

“Guys, what are yo- what happened to Sora?” Pence swiftly rounded the table, hurrying over as he stood beside Olette’s empty side. 

“Erm...heeeey,” Aseles greeted nervously. 

“He’s alright, he needs to rest,” Hayner added. “Do you mind opened the door to the Recovery Room?”

“Sure thing,” Pence nodded quickly as he headed to the door on the right of Aseles. Hayner and Aseles carefully made their way over, and the light of the room flickered on, giving a soft glow of orange around. Pence rustled sheets off the nearest bed to the door, his feet quick on the maroon carpet. Several photos hung from the walls, mostly consisting of the view from Station Heights. 

Sora was laid across gently by Hayner, who then tucked the blankets flimsily over Sora. He rounded the bed and headed to the door to speak with Pence, leaving Aseles, Donald and Goofy to now round Sora’s bed. 

“Why is this happening to Sora?” Goofy asked the question on everyone’s mind.

“I’m not sure,” Aseles shook her head, slightly bending over to fix the bedsheets around Sora’s chest. She laid his arms over, and she gazed down to him, holding her mouth in thought, “Maybe he can tell us, when he wakes up.” Her eyes shifted to hear the door of the room close, and Hayner walking back to Sora’s bed with them. His hands held to the wooden frame at the end, and he shook his head, exhaling deeply.

“You guys have any idea what’s going on?”

“With Sora, no,” Donald crossed his arms, plopping himself on the other bed beside. 

“I meant with everything else,” Hayner rubbed the back of his head, his eyes looking intently to Sora, “You guys have been away for a while, and a lot of things have happened. If anyone...knew about this-“ he gestured to Sora’s unconscious body, “our last ray of hope is gone.”

“What do you mean?” Aseles narrowed her eyes.

“No one in town would listen to Olette, Pence or me,” Hayner quirked his mouth. “Not long ago did....more people with keyblades come to attack us. Ever since then...”

“That’s why you didn’t tell them,” Goofy added, looking to Hayner, “about Sora.”

“If Seifer or his gang knew what happened, they would spread the word, and everyone in town would have another reason to not trust...me,” Hayner rubbed his face firmly, preventing himself from gritting his teeth. 

“Seifer is not here to help the town?” Aseles glared, her fists turning to dark hammers. 

“No, he’s here to get glory...whatever that means,” Hayner waved a hand dismissively, “He’s here to check if we’re doing any suspicious, because he thinks we’re the ones that are calling _the shots_ in town.”

“How _stupid_ is he??” Donald tried to not shout, his face turning slightly red. 

“That’s Seifer for ya,” Hayner shrugged, his face drained of energy, “Everything changed….when I got that key.” 

“We’ll explain it to you then, when Sora wakes up,” Aseles replied, holding onto Hayner’s shoulder, “Thanks for saving us back there. It’s good to see you guys again.”

“Heh...same here,” Hayner shot a genuine smile. He straightened up and headed to the door of the room. Aseles gazed to Sora now, her hand rubbing her cheek off with thoughts now concerned of Sora’s wellfare. Donald and Goofy sat side by side, though Goofy looked curiously around the room.

“Wait,” Goofy called out to Hayner, who turned to look at him. Goofy had counted seven fingers of his gloved hands, “If they are seven of ya, how come there are only six beds?”

Hayner’s lips quirked up from the side when he turned, and he shrugged, “I don’t get much sleep.” He then left without another word.


	4. Preparation

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Next part.  
> Enjoy.  
> Here ya go.  
> Sorry I took so long.  
> I know, I know.  
> Yeah, trying to. Yup.  
> I can do this.  
> I can't do this.  
> But I will try.  
> See Ya.
> 
> Sincerely,  
> Keys

_Aseles stood in an open field, the unusual space covered in the shadows of sunset’s sleep; the lights of the hanging lanterns and burning stars above lit the platform of rock nicely and delicately, that almost the grass beneath Aseles’ feet glimmered and softened in appearance. She didn’t know where she was; it was unfamiliar to her, and yet it seemed so peaceful here._

_“Aseles…”_

_“Terra,” Aseles replied softly, turning her body to face the right to see the familiar Terra approaching. His shoulders moved easily, yet they were so massive, she could feel the winds push away to allow him to pass. His arms rested at his sides, and his head inclined down to catch her eyes directly._

_“Aseles,” he replied kindly. Though, his faint smile dropped, and turned lightly grim that it made Aseles automatically uneasy of the sudden change._

_“What is it?”_

_“Your friend is having an inner battle within himself,” Terra noted, and Aseles instantly knew who he was referring to._

_“Yes, he is.”_

_“You must be cautious around him. This is not any ordinary fight; it will not cease to gain control, and you must be there to prevent it from getting worse. Sora’s locked Darkness is growing immensely, and it is very dangerous if something provokes it to open.”_

_“What do you mean something?” Aseles sighed, “I’m fed up of people not telling me exactly what I should do. Why do you need to /assume/ I already know what to do?”_

_“The battle within Sora is only something he himself can fight, but he will need his friends to keep Vanitas locked away.”_

_“Vani-tas? Who is Vanitas?” Aseles opened her arms out._

_“Someone that /should’ve/ stayed asleep.”_

The rest was short-lived, but it wasn’t enough to settle all the turmoil and clashes Aseles was having in her thoughts. When she awoke, she had no time to think about what Terra had informed her because she found herself greeted by Olette, who had handed out food for Donald and Goofy. With Aseles’ tray in her hand, the brunette accepted the offer gladly, and began to eat, in all hopes to pushing Terra’s face out of her mind.

But whatever small talk Olette was bringing in, Aseles could hear the provided name ring in her ears here and there. Who the heck was _Vanitas_? He seemed like a threat, of how Terra addressed him. Was he someone Terra had clashed before, or again, was this all a figment of Aseles’ imagination? None of it was making sense, but as usual, Aseles had no play or voice in what was happening in the depths of her head. 

From what Olette was briefing (with Aseles _now_ paying attention), it seemed everything Hayner had updated them was true, and then some. No one was outdoors, for the fear of being attacked by something else again. If Olette or Pence had to go out, they had to be escorted by Hayner, but if he wasn’t available, then one of Seifer’s own had to accompany. Aseles could only imagine how dangerous it must be, if two opposing groups had to work together to actually salvage themselves from any attack. It all seemed like a bad dream, and Aseles wasn’t sure when everyone was going to wake up. 

As the group began to all draw out to the main room of the Mansion, Aseles remained in the Recovery Room, and kept an eye on Sora. She wasn’t sure why she got stuck with being the one to console him after the incident, but it did seem that Donald and Goofy were unsure how to react to Sora’s sudden transformation. He wasn’t himself, and they didn’t know what triggered it. Was it the creature they fought earlier? It was definitely not some ordinary Heartless...or was it this...Vanitas?

Aseles paused, lifting her chin slightly from her rested hand to see Sora was stirring himself awake. Aseles straightened up her posture, though she kept her arms relaxed, her hands in between her thighs on the bed. She scanned Sora’s scrunching and mumbling mouth, and then to his orbs that began to flicker to show the sky within them. He grunted a bit, adjusting his back on the bed properly. He seemed to be unaware of his surroundings, his hands freely purchasing around to gain some sort of recognition of his last memory.

“You’re awake,” Aseles announced, and caught Sora’s attention. His eyes opened in full, and they looked over to Aseles, blinking gently. 

“Aseles? W-Where...where are we?” Sora began to sit up, rubbing the back of his head as he outstretched and partly opened his legs to a comfortable position. 

“We’re in the Old Mansion, in the woods,” Aseles provided gently.

“What happened?” Sora looked over, his eyes gluing to Aseles now. She sighed, resisting the urge to cross her arms, and instead, made herself open to whatever reason Sora had to give for _now_ telling them what was going on in himself.

“You passed out, after what happened at the Sandlot,” Aseles replied.

“Oh...” Sora nodded lightly. The silence heaved between the two, and to be blunt, Aseles knew she had no right to question Sora. 

Before, she had kept a lot of stuff from him, despite Sora constantly asking what was wrong, or what was going on in her mind. For her to now be in his shoes, she knew the right thing was to ask, and to actually get a clear answer. Like that previous time in Port Royal, so long ago, Aseles herself was a threat to everyone; could it be that Sora was a threat to them now in their travels? And to think, they merely had only begun. 

“It’s probably...weird for me to ask this now, but-“ Aseles took a breath- “mind telling me what happened back there?”

Sora sighed, seeming to be contemplating on his words, “It’s....I’m not sure.” He shook his head, his bangs going from side to side, “I can’t explain it to you. But it’s something...inside me. I didn’t think it was anything...until now.”

“How long?” Aseles insisted. 

Sora shrugged gently, “I’m not exactly sure. It started happening recently. Jeez...I can only imagine what you guys were thinking when you saw me....turn like that.”

“Well,” Aseles sighed, “we had no idea what to do. To be honest, I sort of...winged the situation. Hayner wasn’t too willing to try anything, considering him and the gang are already on a leash with the rest of the town.”

“What do you mean?” Sora raised a brow. Aseles momentarily explained to him the situation, and when she finished, the male brunette frowned, “Oh....that’s awful. I feel like I made it worse now.”

“No, it’s fine. If you want, we can go out and talk to them,” Aseles reassured, walking over and sitting beside Sora. She rested her hand on his back, soothing it, “they’re all probably waiting for you to wake up, so we can tell them what’s been going on in the worlds.”

“Hmm...” Sora nodded, “Alright.”

“They’ll give you something to eat too,” Aseles smiled. 

“Aseles?” 

“Yeah?” she blinked, seeing Sora rub the side of his neck, his eyes catching the ground.

“When you were dealing with....things on your own, how did you power over it?”

“...Do you want me to be honest?” He nodded. “I don’t believe I have yet,” Aseles admitted with a strained mouth. “Maybe it’s because I don’t remember everything. I felt pretty much alone, and I thought that if I told you guys what...was going on, you guys wouldn’t trust me anymore. You were already on the verge of doing that, twice I think.”

“I’m sorry,” Sora rested his hands on his bent knees, sighing, “I guess you could say...now I know how you feel, in a way. I’m not sure...what it is, but as long as I have you guys on my side, everything will be fine.” He turned his gaze to her, and smiled fondly.

“Yeah,” Aseles smiled lightly, “Come on, let’s go to the main room.” The wielders stood up, and proceeded their way toward the door of the room. 

Once in sight of everyone, Sora was immediately greeted with hugs from Olette and Pence, even Hayner who seemed to have pushed Sora’s episode away. The two embraced tightly, and pulled away while smiling widely at each other. Aseles beamed at the sight, glad that Hayner was more invested on Sora’s arrival. Seifer’s gang said nothing, but Sora being Sora, he greeted them warmly, making Fuu look at him with a hint of curiosity. Vivi clearly waved to Sora, which gained him a slight stare from Rai and Seifer. The entire group sat down on the long table, with Hayner and Sora sitting side by side on the other side, while Pence and Olette were on the other. Seifer’s group rounded the edge of the table, and then seated across from Sora and Hayner were Aseles, Donald and Goofy. 

“Feeling good now?” Hayner quirked a grin, patting Sora’s back.

“Yeah, loads. Thanks for letting me use one of the beds,” Sora nodded, “It’s great to see you guys. But I’m guessing a lot has happened since we left.”

“A lot, yeah,” Pence agreed, “but it’s nothing we can’t handle. Hayner takes care of us.”

“A keyblade huh?” Sora raised a brow. 

“Yeah...” Hayner shrugged gently, “It happened in the Sandlot. Hit a guy randomly when I ran over, and when those...creatures jumped, that’s when it happened.”

“Clearly it was given to you for a reason. To protect your friends,” Sora admitted cheerfully. 

“Yeah, I suppose so,” Hayner shrugged, and everyone in Hayner’s crowd completely ignored Seifer’s faint mumbling at the side. 

“But I know you guys have questions, so we should probably tell you what’s been going on,” Sora added next. The group listened intently as Sora began to paint the situation about the Substitutes, that even Seifer himself was drawn into the lecture. As Sora drew on, Aseles could tell the worry that was developing in Hayner’s expression, and the unsettled posture he was tensing up in. Both Pence and Olette were exchanging glances to Hayner, to Sora, and back again, unsure of how their leader was standing by the news. 

“You’re saying some person is handing these fake keyblades out, but for what??” Hayner probed, extending his hands out in a desperate fashion on the table. “How can keyblade wielders just go missing??”

“We’re not exactly sure...the information is from a second source, but it’s something to still be concerned about,” Sora replied.

“Is that why they would invade our town? Kidnapping people?” Hayner gritted his teeth. 

Aseles added solemnly. “It’s not an easy thing to take in.”

“It’s _not_ ,” Hayner clenched his teeth. “They would be hurting our neighbors.”

“Then it’s important that we tell you everything now,” Sora added.

“No one in this town wants to listen to us,” Pence replied. “But the only problem we’ve had so far are those creatures that have been destroying some structures in town. We don’t know what they are, but we’ve searched everywhere for the cause of it.”

“Because someone thought it would be _easier_ if we kept destroying them until the leader came out,” Olette crossed her arms, raising an eyebrow at Hayner.

“Hey, it was a good plan at the _start_ ,” Hayner defended.

“Then the best course of action is to find the boss, if there is one, and take it out,” Donald interjected. 

“We figured, but it’s difficult to,” Pence replied.

“What do you mean?” Goofy scratched the side of his hat.

“We found out the monsters come out of the Tunnelways of the town, probably in the Underground Concourse. But...it’s too powerful with only a few of us taking care of it,” Olette delivered with an overwrought expression. “Hayner can’t do it by himself, and Seifer refuses to cooperate.”

“That’s because Seifer can handle it all on his own, ya-“

“Will you just _shut up_?” Hayner cut Rai off, delivering an edgy look. Rai halted on his words, though Seifer was undeterred, scoffing at Hayner’s tone.

“You can’t admit you need us to help you,” Seifer announced boldly. 

“No, I can’t handle you being in _my_ way and constantly badgering your mouth off thinking you know what you’re doing,” Hayner defended immediately. 

“Alright guys,” Sora stood up in between the standing Hayner and Seifer now, who were giving daggers to one another over Sora’s shoulder. “Let’s work together then; I’m sure if we put our differences aside, we’ll be able to take it down. Sound good?”

“....Fine,” Hayner breathed angrily out, crossing his arms tersely on his chest. Seifer seemed to be wondering how to insult Hayner next, until Sora gave him a definite glare, making the blond stop on his words.

“Alright, then let’s get ready to go,” Sora replied.

“Then Pence, Olette, Fuu and Vivi will stay to keep the Mansion in one piece,” Hayner ordered, a bit more relaxed in his stance now. “We’ll head to the Sunset Terrace, since that’s the only entrance that isn’t entirely blocked.”

“Sounds good. Everyone ready?” Donald and Goofy answered with a short cheer, while Aseles herself merely nodded, hoping that things would go smoothly. The last thing they needed was for Sora to transform again, and as bad as it sounded, she was hoping his transformation wasn’t going to be as bad as hers.

AT SUNSET TERRACE:

After checking and supplying preparations, Sora, Hayner and their groups stood in front of the entryway to the Tunnelway, that seemed to be sinking into the bottom grounds of the city’s roads. Already seeing how enclosed the tunnel was, Aseles was preparing for how small their battle arena was going to be; it seemed they blocked every other entrance off in hopes of cornering the beast in one place. If it was so threatening that Hayner, Seifer and Rai couldn’t handle it, Aseles could only assume it was something to be wary of when approaching it. 

“Is everyone ready?” Hayner turned his front to the group, his back to the Tunnel. Sora and his group reassured once more, while Seifer and Rai glared over to Hayner in disapproval. “You could always go back,” Hayner offered, not looking too pleased either that the duo was here.

“No way, so you can pull one over us?” Seifer defended with a defiant point.

“Don’t you guys get it?” Donald quacked exasperatedly. “It’s not about you, it’s about the townsfolk!”

“See, Donald gets it,” Hayner openly gestured to Donald, and the two began to glare toward the oppressive teens. 

“The point is-“ Sora broke halfway into their glaring war, looking in-between the opposing forces, “-if we want to get rid of the….Heartless, or whatever it is, we need to work together.”

“Fine…then make sure he doesn’t get in my way,” Hayner huffed out, throwing his hand annoyed in Seifer’s direction. Aseles sighed, glancing over to Seifer’s direction. The teen was about to blurt out something to the leading Hayner, but Aseles swiftly raised her arm, and stretched her keyblade in front of Seifer’s face firmly.

“You get in the way, and I swear I will kick you so hard, you won’t recollect walking inside right now,” she threatened. Seifer glowered, but kept silent as he began to follow with Rai. Aseles watched him from behind, and proceeded to walk past them, now walking alongside Goofy. Hayner kept the lead with Sora, Donald making sure to keep up on his other side. 

“How big do you think it is?” Aseles whispered to Goofy.

“Hmm…well if it was as big as the other monster we saw, it wouldn’t be a problem with all of us,” Goofy replied with a determined nod. Aseles hummed in thought, her eyes glazing along the dim-lighted, brick walls. A decoration of dark colored bricks ran along the lower half of the walls, and the corners were filled to the brim with cobwebs and a soft breeze. Pillars were evenly scattered along open areas they came across, holding the structures in place. Despite everything looking settled and renovated, it was obvious no one had trekked in here for a while. 

As their walk continued, Aseles was unable to feel any sort of Darkness about. She knew there was something in the tunnels, but to pinpoint where it was, it was oddly a challenge.

“Can you feel something?” Goofy asked Aseles, patting her shoulder. 

However, she shook her head, “No, I can’t.”

“Over there,” Sora’s voice rose, and he indicated with a finger to the bend ahead. 

“Are you sure?” Hayner looked to the brunette, as did everyone else. Aseles’ eyes narrowed; Sora could sense the Darkness of the creature nearby?

“Around the corner then,” Hayner whispered to the group. Everyone halted, preparing their stance. Hayner swung his keyblade out with Sora. Aseles gripped her handle, looking back to see Rai cracking his fists and seeing Seifer pulling out a metal bat from his waist. Well, it seemed like everyone was prepared. 

“Don’t hesitate and give it all you got,” Hayner turned his head to the group as he leaned against the wall. 

“Let’s go!” Donald called out, shooting his wand forward. Instantly, everyone ran around the bend, dashing into another open area. A flowing spout of a running waterway ran along the bottom edge at the far side. A large pillar stood at the corner edge of the area, but as the group continued to gaze around…there was nothing else hiding. The place was empty.

“Is this a joke?” Seifer huffed crudely. “I’m telling you, they’re making this up!”  
Hayner scowled, questioning Seifer’s motives with his eyes, “If you’re coming down here to prove a point, then I suggest you leave!”

“Seifer’s not simple-minded, ya know? He knows you all have a plan to turn against us!” Rai jabbed a fist forward. Sora grew a firm line on his face, and Donald was turning red like a fresh lump of fiery coal.

“You don’t get it do you?” Donald spat back. “This is serious!”

“Don’t even waste your breath,” Hayner pointed out angrily, growling lightly as he and Seifer kept their constricted stares. “He’s not getting what we’re putting ourselves into.”

“Well, as you can clearly tell, pipsqueaks, there’s nothing here,” Seifer defended. “If you don’t mind, we’ll just be leaving to tell everyone in town on who are the real criminals.”

“That’s gotta be the stupidest thing you’ve ever said,” Hayner rolled his eyes, placing a fist on his hip. “Fine, go ahead. Do whatever you want. Just get out of our way.”

“We sure will,” Seifer scoffed, beginning to walk back with Rai following suite.

“Sora?” Aseles looked over, seeing Goofy standing beside Sora, his gloved hands holding onto Sora’s shoulders, “What’s wrong, buddy?”

“…..It’s here,” Sora’s stance had turned rigid, and his hand gripped onto the handle of his keyblade, “It’s getting closer-“ An echo of screeches boomed across the tunnels, making Aseles wince of their high pitches. Seifer and Rai froze, and began to quickly back up from the large shadow that was approaching, followed by another, and then a few more. 

Suddenly, the entire walls ran with black objects; blue-tinted creatures leaping along the ground and walls. At the corner they began to jumble and mold together, and began to form a massive blob of dark matter. A set of jaws cracked open, and a stream of clear, dark drool began to flow down the sides of the sharp fangs. Its pair of paws slammed forward against the ground, making it tremor with the liquid of the waterway splashing on impact. It took the exact image of the last creature they encountered, except this one was bulkier in size, and had no means of going down without a solid fight this time.

“Still think this is a joke?” Donald shouted to Seifer and Rai who had taken defensive positions, properly facing forward. The creature leapt forward, and slammed its feet against the rock floor. It turned its body in a quick swipe, its tail swinging across and hitting everyone back. All fell with a groan, but quickly stood to see its back was blocking the exit of the area now. It hissed threateningly toward the cornered group.

“We stick together!” Sora shouted, the friends immediately standing beside each other, eying the approaching and slithering enemy. 

The creature stuck its claws against the cement ground, and Aseles’ eyes widened from the current of black vines stretching forward in their direction. The group parted in different directions, but the sound of Goofy and Rai’ yelps told Aseles otherwise. She shot around, seeing their ankles were gripped by the quick attack, but Sora and Hayner rapidly went to aid, smashing the vines off with a swipe of their keyblades from either side. 

Hayner propelled across the ground, sidestepping as the new flow of vines missed him. He leapt upwards, swinging his arm powerfully down, and smacked the beast to the wall. The area trembled from the burst of Darkness that gave way, but the creature was far from being done in. It shrieked and lance forward with a swing, tossing Hayner across the air and making the male hit the ground. Hayner struggled to his feet, but it wasn’t long until Sora rushed forward to block the oncoming fangs. Aseles hurriedly helped Hayner to his feet, the two looking up to see Donald and Goofy striking the sides of the creatures while Sora battled the front jaws, striking his keyblade in an arm of the beast. It thrashed violently and aimlessly in pain, catching Sora on one fierce blow, and sent the keybearer skidding across the ground. 

“Help him up!” Aseles called out as she leapt across the air. The creature took notice of her immediate approach, and it lunged a paw forward, ready to slam her down against the ground. “FIRE!” a wheel of flames began to encircle around the female, and the Heartless-like being retracted its attack, giving Aseles the opportunity to strike against its skull. Another shriek followed, and Aseles’ back was met with the wall, and a small gasp escaping her lungs. She fell to the ground, grunting as she tried to get up from the sudden fall. 

“Aseles!” Goofy rushed forward.

“Goofy, watch out!” Donald cried. Goofy yelped as he was hauled up from his ankle, a set of vines shooting upward and heaving Goofy off of his feet. He yelped in surprise, his body now dandling and swaying above the opened, drooling jaws of the creature’s parted mouth.

“No you don’t!” Seifer had managed to skid and dodge the oncoming vines on the ground, and he slammed his bat against the creature’s abdomen, making it scream and hunch forward. It’s grip loosened on Goofy, and he fell into Sora’s aid, and was settled on his feet again. 

“One o’clock, Rai!” Seifer called out, and Rai instinctively obeyed, grinning from ear to ear as the tall teen charged in great speed. Just when Aseles thought it would be a useless attack, she was truly shocked to see Rai jam a fist against the beast’s head. The enemy was slammed against the brick wall, and the water beneath it spewed upwards. 

Aseles took initiative and pointed her keyblade forward, “Thunder!” The conducted spell cut across the air, and took refuge into the skeleton of the fiend. It jolted and squirmed in agony, and a whine began to engulf the tense air. Aseles withdrew her spell, and what followed next made her jump in place; Sora’s keyblade cut across, and it cut deeply into the chest of the laid monster. It groaned into its inevitable defeat, and laid lifeless on the floor. It began to disintegrate, but what caught Aseles off-guard was the fact that there was literally nothing left of it. Not even a small heart of sorts.

“What is was that thing?” Hayner exhaled out, rubbing the back of his shoulder. 

“Whatever it was…” Sora breathed out, and walked forward to collect his keyblade from the ground. He slowly lifted it, and turned to the group, “It wasn’t a Heartless.”

LATER, AT THE MANSION:

“Still think this is a game?” Olette crossed her arms, staring unimpressed to Seifer and Rai. The rest followed her gaze, but it didn’t seem Seifer had a smart mouth to run now. Having a few scratches, the two males sat in still silence, arms crossed as they stared at the table to avoid everyone’s gaze.

“Alright, you made your point. Stop making a big fuss about it,” Seifer mumbled, looking a little pale. Aseles was unsure if he was going to pass out or not. 

“The only reason why we made a big fuss about it was because you were going to make a big mistake,” Pence defended, “When you thought we were making it all up.” Seifer scoffed briefly, shaking his head lightly from the accusation, but from the way he was keeping quiet, Aseles knew he had learned his mistake. 

“Anyways,” Hayner began, looking to Sora and his group, “thanks a lot. We really appreciate the help.”

“It’s not a problem. We’re here to help you any way we can,” Sora reassured with a smile.

“I’m guessing you four are headed to this Yen Sid, right?”

“Yeah, looks like it,” Donald replied.

“If you want, we can ask Yen Sid if he can help you fellas out,” Goofy smiled warmly.

“We wouldn’t want to impose, really,” Hayner replied. “Don’t you have hope in us?”

“Yeah, of course,” Sora chuckled. “If those things ever pop out again though-“

“If they do, we’ll be sure to teach them a lesson,” Olette grinned, making Pence sweatdrop of her straight confidence. 

“Is there anything else you guys would like to know, before we head out?”

“Yeah, one more thing….” Pence sighed, crossing his arms, “Do you think those….Substitutions are planning on coming over here?” Everyone stood silently, Aseles unable to look away from Sora’s tensed jaw. His eyes seemed to faintly constrict, but he kept his stance firm. 

“If they do, be sure to expect us very soon,” was all Sora answered. 

“Hey, can I talk to you for a minute?” Aseles took an approach to Hayner, who seemed a bit off-guard of her sudden request. He nodded at her offer, and the two parted from the chatting group, Hayner pushing his hands in his pockets as he casually stood next to Aseles.

“Something on your mind?” Hayner raised a brow. 

“Still pissed off about your keyblade?” Aseles quirked her lips, gesturing to his hand.

Hayner sighed, rubbing the back of his head with a free hand, “It’s weird….you know?”

“What is?”

“I remember when you guys were over here for a Struggle Tournament…”

“Yeah, I remember that too,” Aseles nodded.

“All I could remember was, ‘Man, Sora’s got a weapon like that to depend on’. He was always so cheerful, even when he had it in his hands…” Hayner shrugged, “I guess what I’m trying to say is…it’s weird, knowing what he has to do with it, what _you_ have to do with it, when you travel around. If it’s like this in Twilight Town, I can only imagine how it is in other places.”

“Yeah, I see your point,” Aseles nodded. “Still angry about having it?”

“Hmm…” Hayner shook his head, a faint smile crossing his face, “No…not as much. If it means I can protect my friends with it, then I’m all for it.”

“Yeah, that’s a good reason,” Aseles smiled. “You’re a lot like Sora, except you know…the really short temper.” 

Hayner chuckled, but then, “What about you? I never asked you, but…how do you feel about it?”

Aseles’ smile dropped, and she looked over to the group who was beginning to bid their farewells, “I’m not sure. I try to push it off.”

“How come?”

“Because…”Aseles exhaled, looking over to Hayner who was observing her, “I still have no clue about what I’m holding in my hand.”

FFW:

The horn of the train blasted through Aseles’ eardrums, making her jump a bit in her seat. She fixed herself comfortably once more, feeling the tracks beneath pull them closer to their destination. The train began to gain momentum as it sped through the opening of the station. Goofy and Sora waved off goodbye to Hayner who was left them at the Train Station.

The two sat back down, facing Donald and Aseles who were now looking out the windows over Sora and Goofy’s heads. The small, lavender train chugged faster, and the colors of the sunset were blasted with a wash of purple and green; the night sky expanded with thousands of stars, signaling they were on their way to Yen Sid’s Tower. 

Despite knowing that they were going for preparations, Aseles always felt a bit anxious when it came to approaching Yen Sid. It was probably the fact that he was a well-respected man, and a powerful wizard; not to mention, he was the one who taught Mickey all he knew, or that’s all she knew. Possibly the fact that he and the mouse were close, she was already on edge on that topic alone. 

Jeezes, she felt like she had to fix that friendship in some way, but still, the lingering image of Ansem’s face hovered her like a horrible dream, a memory she knew was real. Ansem the Wise was gone, and truly, Aseles had no related family but her friends. 

“So you think Yen Sid’s got a plan?” Goofy asked, placing his hands on his knees as he rocked back and forth.

“Yeah, he usually knows what he’s doing,” Sora placed his hands behind his head. 

“Yen Sid always has a plan,” Donald crossed his arms, smirking.

After a few moments, the train began to slow, and came to a full stop. The door of the compartment slid open, and the four stepped onto the green lawn of the wizard’s location. Aseles’ eyes rolled up, and she tilted her head back to have a better look at the tall tower that practically entered the stars themselves. It seemed undisturbed by any other forces, making Aseles sigh in relief. Was it even possible to have something invade Yen Sid’s domain? 

“Hey, remember when Pete was here, and we totally kicked his butt?” Sora grinned, looking toward Donald and Goofy. 

“That was fun,” Donald chuckled as he was the first to hurry to the entrance. Following behind him, Aseles felt Sora close the doors behind them, and up the stairs the group began to venture forth. With each step Aseles took, she felt the heavy weight upon her shoulders, as if telling her to go back down. She wasn’t sure why, but she knew that backing down wasn’t an option anymore. Another danger was planning on damaging the worlds, and it was up to Sora and them to put a stop to it. 

If it was truly Xehanort, Aseles wasn’t even sure how the man lived. His Heartless was defeated, along with his Nobody, Xemnas. There wasn’t a clear explanation on how it would even be probable, but could it be that the attachment to his Heartless and his Nobody no longer served a purpose because they were defeated? Or was there something more to it? It didn’t seem like Mickey knew much, only the fact that Xehanort was still a threat to them all, despite all those years ago. So, if he was alive, how did it even happen?

At last, they reached the top stairs, and before Donald could knock, “I’ve been expecting you.”

In a matter of seconds, the four were sitting in the four seats provided by Yen Sid, who seemed, as always, respectful of his manners, and ancient in his gestures. The room was stacked with a few more books along new shelves. The curtains were drawn to reveal the night sky outside, but Aseles could only suspect that they were there for decoration rather than to hide the sunlight…considering there probably wasn’t. 

“It’s nice seeing you, Master Yen Sid,” Donald greeted jubilantly first. 

“Glad to see you are all holding up well,” Yen Sid smiled openly. “But I suppose now, we shall inform you of your journey ahead.” The four travelers nodded, and scooted a bit closer. “As you all may recall, these fake wielders, known as Substitutions, hold keyblades of their own. But, as we all agreed, they are not the ordinary keyblades that legend has foretold. They are manufactured, by powerful spells of sorts, that not even I could defeat so easily. But keeping that in mind, it complicates things.”

“How so?” Sora raised a brow, “If they’re not real ones?”

“Because, these keyblades are not the descendants of past bearers, then it wouldn’t matter who wielded one. This means new recruits are openly accepted, no matter if their numbers drop…or increase.”

“They’re giving us a bad name already,” Aseles mumbled under her breath. 

Yen Sid caught her attention, and he lifted a finger in her direction, “There is an upside to this complication. These keyblades won’t be able to withstand much force like an original, and will not prove to be more powerful than its genuine counterpart.” Made sense: anyone could hold one, special skills or not. No wonder there was all for recruitment, but all in all, they were all made the same way. They could break easily, but what unsettled Aseles was the fact that the person holding it…could improve. 

Chad seemed to already be an experienced fighter, so she guessed he already had some personal time with it. He was more agile and controllable on his strikes, versus the followers he always seemed to be bring with him.

“So, this all points to Xehanort still?” Aseles asked. “How is that even possible for him to be alive, if we Sora, Donald and Goofy took out his Heartless, and we took out his Nobody?”

“Indeed, you achieved success; both forces needed to be stopped, though the question remains: why is Xehanort here, if he is? I will be conducting research soon, so I cannot say yet what I do not know, but I have no doubts that this new enemy will try everything to dismantle the balance of Light and Dark, and we need to be prepared to stop him. Kingdom Hearts is still in peril, and Xehanort, if it is, is also not a new foe who has tried to reach conquest of it. Master Xehanort is a man who does not take kindly to defeat.”

“Can I…ask something?” Aseles raised a hand, catching her group’s attention.

“Yes, ask away,” Yen Sid gestured.

“Master Xehanort…he wielded a keyblade?” 

Yen Sid paused, and he slowly nodded, watching Aseles carefully, “That is correct.”

“Wait, he was?” Sora interjected, “Is...assuming…he’s still alive.”

“Master Xehanort,” Yen Sid cleared his throat, though his eyes did not look away from Aseles, “was a wielder, heavily exposed to that of Dark forces. I have met the man several times, but each pass and arrival we had was always conflicted against my judgement. I did not scorn or ridicule him for his path, but I certainly was guarded every time we crossed. Master Eraqus, his friend of many years, was always confrontational on that discussion, but even then, I did not take sides on which alignment was far greater or better for mankind.”

Master Eraqus….

Aseles swallowed roughly, rubbing the center of her forehead with the palm of her hand. Jeezes Terra. Not now.

“That is why I’ll be researching very soon, alongside Your Majesty, and Merlin. The history of Master Xehanort’s disappearance is still a mystery, and we do not plan to let it go unsearched as of this moment.”

“Do you know about the creatures that have been attacking in Twilight Town?” Sora asked next.

“Creatures?” Yen Sid raised a brow.

“Yeah, they were there when we got there…” Donald added.

“…I’m afraid I cannot say. I have not felt an opposing force.” Yen Sid raised both brows, “I apologize, I wasn’t aware something was happening.” Wait, what?? Aseles stared to Sora, who seemed to be battling his thoughts in his seat. Was it only something…Sora could feel then?

“They weren’t Heartless but…” Sora furrowed his brows, “It’s hard to describe. There was nothing left when we took it down.”

“I believe I have not encountered anything of the sort, but provided with the knowledge now, I will keep an eye out on the town until my departure.” Yen Sid sat straighter, “I shall help you prepare for your journey. In the next room are the three lovely fairies who helped you before, Sora, Donald and Goofy.” He raised a hand to the door to his left. The four stood, and the door opened in unison, indicating entry. 

“Thank you, Yen Sid,” the four bowed, and Aseles followed behind Sora as he took the lead. 

The room was medium-sized, and far larger than what the door showed. Three mirrors were spread out around the room, forming a triangle and designating a center spot. And the far end of the entryway was an arched window, showing the vast space behind the tower. Red curtains were tied at the sides, and the decorations followed to the upper ceiling, where several trinkets hung and shined. Several drawers were opened around, with knickknacks and wardrobe utensils inside and on the surfaces of the desks. The room appeared much like a dressing room. 

Aseles jerked her head back, seeing three glowing orbs floating in front of her face. They zipped across the air, and each one held a different color: blue, pink and emerald. A burst of light popped out from each one, and Aseles blinked rapidly to see three fairies of Goofy’s height appear. 

The pink orb revealed a middle-aged woman, dressed in a red gown and the tallest of the trio. Her stance and puffed out chest immediately showed Aseles she was the leader; probably for being the oldest, or the most bossy. The green orb showered green sparks, and a kind woman smiled widely to the group of her new visitors. She seemed mature, and was delicately holding her hands in greeting. Finally, the last orb sprouted the shortest and youngest fairy, dressed in a blue gown. Her black hair glimmered with shine, and was neatly tucked beneath her small hat. She seemed quite motherly, with an edge that is.

“Sora, Donald, Goofy!” the red-colored, dressed fairy greeted. She walked forward in little jumps, and hugged the trio tightly, “It’s very good to see you!” The one in green embraced them next, her small arms carefully hugging each person individually. The blue-colored fairy bowed her presence instead, and the three boys waved and smiled.

“Oh, and here’s someone new,” the soft-spoken fairy announced, “What is your name, dear?”

“Erm…” Aseles blushed, clearing her throat as she held out her hand, “My name is Aseles. It’s nice to meet you.”

“Aww, what a dear!” the leader announced, making Aseles redden more and drop her hand.

“It’s very nice to meet you!” the blue fairy nodded with a smirk.

“I’m Flora, this is Fauna (the green fairy) and Merryweather (the blue fairy). We’ve heard much about you from Yen Sid,” Flora reassured. Aseles sweatdropped, wondering what they had heard exactly. 

“Hey, why don’t you go first?” Sora suddenly came from behind, patting at Aseles’ back.

“Of course! Ladies first,” Fauna replied, gently pulling as she held Aseles’ hand. Aseles swallowed gently, now standing in the middle of the two groups. 

In spite of being fully dressed, Aseles felt absolutely exposed by the way the fairies were looking at her. The three of them huddled together, and in their hands they began to pull out glittering wands. They seemed to be bickering and arguing on what color and what clothes, and it wasn’t until she heard the word “dress” that it hit her. They were probably going to strip her naked right now. 

Aseles shot her eyes around, glaring to see Sora, Donald and Goofy quietly snickering, “You little-“

“Let’s make it red!” Flore flicked her wand, a red orb of light hit against Aseles’ side. Aseles coughed from the powder, but when she looked down, her entire wardrobe turned completely crimson. 

Merryweather didn’t seem to take too kindly to the color, “No no! Make it blue!” She flicked her illuminating cerulean wand, and another orb smacked against Aseles, making her cringe at all the light blue that was all over her. Oh gosh, her eyes!

“Now dears, wouldn’t _this_ be better?” Fauna approached, and Aseles was instantly met with green. She sneezed from the glittery spell, able to hear Sora chuckle from behind.

“No, red!” 

“Blue!”

“This, green!”

“I say red! It’s a solid color! It matches her personality!”

“Blue! It matches her eyes!”

“Green! She seems so marvelous in it!”

“HOLD IT!” Aseles shouted, throwing her arms forward. The three fairies froze as the others fell in laughter, making Aseles twitch. She looked down upon herself, seeing all the colors had mixed and smeared all over one another, as if a rainbow had literally puked on her. 

“I….appreciate the help…if that’s what you want to call it,” Aseles mumbled the last part, “It would be really nice though, if you could make me clothes that I’m flexible in.”

“Hmm, I see,” Flora nodded. She then huddled together with the other two, and they began to bicker once again. 

Aseles swiftly looked back, glaring at Sora, “Why you….” Donald and Goofy cleared their laughter off, looking to Sora who grinned widely.

Sora winked, “It was the polite thing to do.”

“When this is over-”

“Alright child, turn around,” Flora announced. Aseles looked back, though she stiffened to see all three were pointing her wands to her. They flicked them once, and a white orb emerged. It tapped onto Aseles’ chest rather more politely than the other spells, and in a matter of a second, Aseles looked down to her glowing form. 

Replacing her upper chest was a black, sleeve-lees shirt, and a sky-blue dress now resting and rounding her waist. On her chest, the dress dropped down to the middle of her breasts to create a V. Dark lavender zigzags ran down at her sides, reaching until her torso. The dress held pockets, which eased Aseles’ burden of walking around pocket-less. Around her waist was a red belt, and underneath her dress she wore black leggings that reached mid-thighs. Her old shoes were replaced with a pair of red, laced up boots that reached the bottom of her knees. They seemed cool and flexible to move in, and she rotated her ankle to test one out. It seemed easier to make quick slides with them, by the way they were constructed at the soles. Finally, as a last touch, her forearms were covered in black guards, tight at the wrist and open at the elbow area. She reached up to feel her hair was now loose around her neck, the tips ranging from her from neck to the top of her shoulders.

“Well….when you said ‘dress’, I didn’t think you were serious,” Aseles smiled nervously.

“You don’t like it??” Flora asked. 

Aseles quickly waved her arms in front, “No no it’s not that! I just never really worn a dress…until now. It feels great!”

“She loves it!” Fauna smiled widely, clapping her hands. 

“You look marvelous!” Merryweather gripped Aseles’ hand, and twirled her around once. 

“Heh, thanks,” Aseles blushed.

“Well, don’t gawk! How does it look?” Flora asked loudly, her eyes looking behind Aseles. Aseles turned, and immediately Goofy and Donald gave her a thumbs up, approving of the new attire. Sora’s face had turned slightly red, and he coughed in his hand. Aseles smirked, crossing her arms with a raised brow. Who was laughing now?

“It’s…nice,” Sora nodded hurriedly.

“Thank you,” Aseles chuckled. Sora stared at her, the edge of his eye twitching from the turn of events. 

“On the way, you will gain new abilities,” Flora announced, taking Aseles’ hands into hers, “Use them wisely, but I’m sure your friends will help you along the way.”

“Thank you so much,” Aseles bowed her head. 

“Speaking of Sora, it’s your turn!” Merryweather pushed him from behind, making him walk past Aseles. She grinned at him as he scorched from his embarrassment, standing in the middle of the room. Aseles went to go stand by Donald and Goofy, the three now eying Sora who was smiling nervously, standing before the fairies. 

In no time, the three fairies had almost instantly come up with an outfit, and Aseles guessed this was why Sora made her go first. The same process began, with Sora’s clothes lighting up, and as it dimmed it began to unveil of what was underneath its magical properties. 

His hair held a shorter haircut, but it still protruded from the front and up, obviously denying the laws of gravity. His black jumpsuit was switched for a light, navy one, this time with longer pants where the ends folded above his gray, yellow-rimmed shoes. Yellow pockets were fastened and accessible at his waist, and two yellow belts overlapped each other underneath a red belt that was around his lower abdomen. His sleeves were rolled up to his elbows, his toned arms grazing nothing until they reached his wrists where a pair of slimmed gloves rested with metal knuckles. His jacket was switched for a leaner, red one, cupped around the shoulders. His silver crown rested easily on his chest, where it shined nicely, having being cleaned. Aseles scoffed lightly to see Sora turn around, grinning at his new fresh of clothes. 

“Lookin’ good, Sora!” Goofy gave a thumbs up.

“Aww, you’re makin’ Aseles blush!” Donald suddenly shouted. Aseles quickly unfolded her arms, smacking the duck upside the head. He groaned, rubbing the bump that had formed. 

“You’re such a big quack!” Aseles hissed. Donald mumbled as Goofy snickered behind his gloved hands.

“Marvelous!” Merryweather and Fauna agreed.

“Now, here you are,” Flora flicked her wand forward, four orbs of color approaching Sora. “These are stronger forms with the ones you had before, Sora. I’m sure you’re skilled enough to learn new techniques along the way.”

“Thanks!” Sora smiled with a nod, and began to walk to his group, and made sure to stand next to Aseles. He nudged her arm, and Aseles merely stared forward with a deadpanned look. She needed to hit this boy one day.

“Now, you two are up!” Flora stated, looking over at Donald and Goofy. A knock on the door caught Aseles’ attention, and standing in the doorway was Yen Sid. He smiled over to the three fairies, then to Donald and Goofy, and finally to Sora and Aseles.

“May I speak to the two of you for a moment?” Sora and Aseles exchanged a glance, but nodded as they headed out and felt the door close behind them. The duo faced Yen Sid at his desk again, though this time, Aseles couldn’t physically sit down. Yen Sid seemed to be distracted by his own thoughts, looking blankly at the table. Before Sora or her could interrupt, he came back to look at both of them sternly. 

“In due time, when you are more prepared, I will bring you back, wielders of the Keyblade, to take the Mark of Mastery.”

“Mark of Mastery?” Sora blinked, Aseles looked to him, and back to Yen Sid.

“Yes. It seems this new threat has posed a problem, for I wanted you to take the test in more settling circumstances. But it is important, that in order to defeat these Substitutions and their leader, we must seek new Keyblade Masters to prevail over the oncoming threats that await us.”

“Wait, do you mean…a written test or a physical or…?” Aseles gestured with open hands.

“It is a test that I wish to present to you, because I feel that you can succeed if you put your best foot forward. But, until then, when you come back with results of how the worlds are as of right now, I will hold the preparations and wait for your return. I intend to test Riku as well.”

“Did you want to test him first? Then us?” Sora suggested.

“No, this will be done together,” Yen Sid replied. Sora and Aseles nodded gently, but as the two looked to one another, they knew instantly that there was something deeper to this…Mark of Mastery if Yen Sid only brought it up to them. 

To their right, the wooden door creaked open, and walking into the room were Donald and Goofy. Aseles caught sight of the duck, and she stifled back a laugh as Sora chuckled audibly. The fluffed-up duck grumbled in annoyance, crossing his arms as he stood on Sora’s other side and Goofy on Aseles’. 

“My, that’s a new look on you, Donald Duck,” Yen Sid replied casually.

“He didn’t hold still,” Goofy pointed out, only making Donald fume in irritation, slapping down his feathered arms. 

“I’m sure with your newfound skills will prove useful to you all,” Yen Sid started with a stern expression, “The worlds are in peril, and it is up to you once again, to save us. Use and take whatever preparations you need. The journey ahead will be a difficult one, but rest assured, we all believe you can balance the worlds of Light and Dark, and save Kingdom Hearts.” 

“You can count us!” Goofy saluted as the rest copied, nodding determinedly. 

“We won’t let you down!” Sora grinned. 

“Yeah! Anything for you, Yen Sid!” Donald added.

“And for the worlds,” Aseles finished. 

Yen Sid nodded, and finished with a smile, “Good luck.”


	5. Catch a Tiger by the Tail

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ah jeez.  
> Jeezes.  
> Freakin jeezes.
> 
> SO! My computer almost died on me the other day, but I fixed it...yaaaaaybecauseIhavealotofstuffsavedonhere. 
> 
> I ammmmm....terribly sorry for the long delay. School happened, life happened, responsibilities happened. Everything. Just. Happened.
> 
> But anyways! I hope you're all doing fiiine. I have to edit a lot of stuff out for this chapter, but I am content with what I was able to put together. Enjoy kiddies, and excuse the typos.
> 
> Sincerely,  
> Keys~

FFW:

The trip from Yen Sid’s seemed a little hazy in Aseles’ head, but having barely woken up, she figured she was just tired of roaming around in space for the good amount of time since they left. The Mark of Mastery gauged her interested, but it somewhat bothered her to not know what it was about. Yen Sid didn’t say much about it, unable to give it a clear image in her head or some form of what it was for. She guessed she would have to deal with it later, when they got back and informed Riku about it, if he didn’t know about it by then.

“Sorry if we’re taking a while. We really don’t have a map to go on,” Sora voiced over from the wheel. Aseles sighed to herself, leaning against the arm of her seat while Goofy stretched his legs and arms out fully, yawning in response. Donald seemed to be testing out functions of the gummi ship, and giving it new modifications for future travels. He seemed to be making a map into it, and Aseles grew curious, peeking over.

“A map?” Aseles blinked, tilting her head over the duck’s zippered hat. 

“That way, we follow coordinates perfectly when we need to go back,” Donald answered. His feathered digits began to lay out the base of a grid, and Aseles continued to gaze, inspecting his movements carefully. 

“That’s pretty handy,” Aseles answered out loud, and pointed with a finger to the three-dimensional grid, “Then the red markers are the next destination?”

“Yeah, you got it,” Donald nodded firmly with a look towards her. “Did you want me to teach you?”

“Yeah, sure,” Aseles nodded eagerly, leaning over her seat more properly, “but I’ve never seen this before, on any gummi ship. I’m guessing you started working on it at Disney Castle?”

“Had a lot of time,” Donald shrugged indifferently. 

“It was pretty weird, not being together for that long,” Sora added in after, looking over to the two, and Goofy who was now sitting up properly, wide awake.

“It was…kinda lonely, wasn’t it Donald?” Goofy scratched the top-back of his head. Donald paused his meticulous movements, and looked ahead to the galaxy. Aseles picked up her head to gaze at him properly, seeing he was contemplating on what to answer. Donald was never really once to express his emotions so openly, but he seemed much more comfortable with her than he did before.

“It was,” Donald replied, “but it felt like we were missing something too. Something important.”

“Missing something?” Aseles arched a brow. 

“Yeah,” Donald went back to rearrange the mapping grid. Sora and Aseles shared a glance, but looked to Goofy for the next answer.

“Something we didn’t know was out of place,” Goofy tapped his chin with a gloved finger, “But, now it’s gone.”

“Guess you figured out what the problem was then,” Sora replied, “The worlds ended up being in trouble.”

“Yeah, I guess you’re right,” Goofy nodded in agreement, smiling gently, “But that’s why we’re here, to help the worlds again.”

“Yeah, of course,” Sora smiled softly, “And us together, we’ll be unbeatable!” 

“Look, up ahead,” Goofy pointed out, making the other three companions look over with interest. In the distance, Aseles could see the advancing of a sphere-world, expanding in size with a clouded atmosphere of dense pillows.

“Hang on!” Sora chuckled in delight as he began to descend the gummi ship downwards, receiving an urgent quack from Donald as a response to his quick maneuver. In her seat properly, Aseles’ eyes glazed among the terrain of deep jungle below, and she wondered if they were back in Deep Jungle. Something told her otherwise, though, and as they grew closer to the ground, she saw much more open land of long pasture and collected trees. Once the gummi ship landed in a secure land of plains, the group settled and jumped off to feel the heat of the land. Aseles backed up with whipping hair to see the gummi ship subside, and begin to ascend upwards in quick speed.

“Nothing but jungle out there,” Sora hovered his palm over the roof of his brightened eyes, tilting his head curiously. He hummed in thought, looking the other direction that gave comfort for the others to follow his stare. There was no wooden tree house on a tall hill, which gave Aseles the idea that this wasn’t...Deep Jungle. If it wasn’t...what was?

“Maybe if we recon a bit, we’ll find something,” Sora proposed. He held his chin and pointed to the jungle nearby, “In there we’ll look, and see if we run into any Substitutions...or those Heartless again.” His trio agreed, and Sora began to lead the way while Aseles followed second in line, her eyes still inspecting their surroundings. 

Once inside the jungle, it was severely packed with various kinds of vegetation; from curving tree trunks to the great ferns sprouting up like large flowers, The sky was a clear, deep blue, matching those of Sora’s as he constantly kept looking back to check on Aseles, Donald and Goofy. She waved at him in reassurance, and he smiled in reply. He walked over the tossed, mossy logs on the ground, eying the area carefully before treading further into a new section of the jungle. There didn’t seem to be any difference from what they started, and after what seemed to be half an hour of trekking, the gang finally stopped and Aseles situated herself to sit on a nearby boulder. Her eyes squinted past the shrubs and trees, but not much could be seen from a distance. 

A sudden shout echoed from the greenery, and Aseles jumped down from the boulder while the others looked in the same direction. The tall treetops swayed and pushed, and the sound of rushing footsteps captured Aseles’ attention.

“Someone is in trouble,” Aseles cut in.

“Baloo! HELP!” the voice of a boy shot out.

“Let’s go!” Sora dashed forward in haste, holding his keyblade in hand as he practically slid across the ground. Aseles kept pace, looking back to see Donald and Goofy successfully hurdling over logs and ferns. 

Finally coming to a clearing, the group paused to look around, and caught sight of a dark-skinned boy, flat on his bottom against the base of a tall tree. His tussled dark locks stood wild on his head with the bangs stuck on his forehead with sweat. Crouching before him were four creatures of dark formation, all looking like overgrown felines. Their bulky forearms harbored great claws of unnatural length, and their tails wavered among the air in anticipation to the boy’s surrender. 

“Over here!” Donald cast a hurried spell of Thunder, immediately angering the Heartless-like leopards. Their heads shot around, and now targeted the group with Sora in the front of the alliance. 

“Want someone to pick on, you got it!” Sora threatened with a pointed keyblade. The creatures’ sharpened, yellow beads of eyes locked onto Sora, and they snarled with mighty lungs when they pounced. The group broke apart, each handling their own enemy with Donald and Goofy alternating with their opponents. Sora defended against his, but the pack leader showed much aggression to his taunt from earlier. Sora blocked continuously with the neck of his keyblade, and managed to strike against it, sending it to hit against the bark of the tree. Aseles gritted her teeth as she swung defiantly against her monster, repeatedly slamming her head to combat its massive paws. It lurched forward, and Aseles tossed her body weight backwards. The leopard lunged, but Aseles rolled her body backwards, kicking at it and sending it overhead and making it hit the bottom of a tree branch. Once it hit the ground, Aseles wasted no time in striking downwards, and caught the leopard on its stomach. It screeched viciously, but Aseles did not falter and rammed her keyblade once into its chest. It evaporated in defeat, and Aseles withdrew her keyblade, coughing a bit from the musk that was left. 

“Everyone okay?” Goofy’s voice sounded out, and Aseles turned to see the group had gotten rid of their monsters as well. 

“Yeah,” Sora nodded, “Hey are you- wait!” Aseles shot her eyes to Sora’s left, seeing the little boy was now sprinting away, and ducking into the trees.

“Come back!” Goofy called out, but Sora gave quick chase, Donald and the other two to follow. They pushed and evaded across the bushes, vines and branches, but what made Aseles fall back against the ground was the sound of a large, angry animal. She thudded against the ground in a groan, but swung her keybalde in defensive to see the others had also fallen back. Almost hovering over them was a wide and tall bear, coated in gray fur and sharp teeth. 

“Hold it, HOLD IT!” Donald waved his arms frantically, speaking for everyone in the group with terrified faces.

“Wait, Baloo, wait!” the similar voice of the boy seemed to be heard from behind. The bear backed up almost at command, and straightened up on his two, rear legs.

“You said they were following you!” the bear cut in, and indicated to the group with a claw. 

“No no, they saved me from the creatures that were chasing me,” the little boy corrected, and his small hands firmly tugged at the side fur exposed to him.

“I think I broke my back,” Sora groaned, beginning to stand up with Donald and Goofy helping Aseles up. “Look, sorry we scared you. We just wanted to make sure you were okay.” The keybearer’s eyes glanced to the boy, and then to the bear whose name was Baloo.

“Ohhh, you saved little britches, huh?” the bear exhaled in relief, scratching his head with the tip of his claws casually. “Can’t say I’m angry, but thanks. One second I’m eating some fruits and ants, and the next thing you know, Mowgli is out of sight. Bagheera would’ve sliced me into pieces for sure.”

“Mowgli, and Baloo then,” Goofy indicated, making Baloo nod and Mowgli…shy away behind his fuzzy protector. “Pleased to meet you!”

“Oh yeah, hey,” Sora smiled warmly, lifting a hand, “Name’s Sora, Aseles, Goofy and Donald.”

“Never seen you fellas here before,” Baloo rubbed the bottom of his rough chin, “But what are you doing in the jungle from the Man Village?”

“The Man Village?” Sora rubbed the back of his head, “Erm….oh! Well, you see, we thought to um….bring Donald and Goofy into the wild!” He lifted a hand, and patted the top of Donald’s head down like a trained pup, “They get….really uneasy around people. Isn’t that right?”

Donald gave him a stunned, annoyed look, but Goofy nodded in agreement, “Sure are.”

“They told us that….things have been lurking in the jungle,” Aseles quickly added in, clearing her throat. “Like the creatures were just saw right now.”

“Hmm….I’m not one to like humans….but, since you saved Mowgli and all, I’ll let this pass,” Baloo hummed in agreement, “But, I don’t see how you kids can do it.”

“Just leave it to us, not to worry,” Sora smiled eagerly.

“We should tell Bagheera, Baloo,” Mowgli tugged at his furry arm, and Baloo seemed to have remembered some very important detail to make him sigh heavily.

“Right….I guess so,” he scratched his neck, “Then, lead the way.”

“Alright, follow me,” Mowgli smiled to the gang, “Thanks for saving me back there.”

“Don’t mention it,” Sora waved a hand in response with a beam.

In the route, the jungle seemed a bit livelier, and a lot less thick than when they had entered at the edge. Aseles began to have a better visual, and they even passed a large waterfall where they were able to replenish some water and potions. In waiting for Mowgli to finish cleaning his feet, Aseles looked to Baloo and cleared her throat to catch his attention.

“So, how do you know Mowgli? You said you weren’t fond of people.”

“Ah…Mowgli ain’t like them other folks. Well, I’ve known him for some time now, and he’s a great kid,” Baloo quirked a smile, “Bagheera said he was raised with a pack of wolves, and has always been in the jungle.”

“Huh, that’s interesting,” Sora nodded in agreement, rolling up his sleeves neatly to his elbows again, “Kind of sounds like another friend we had, except he was raised by gorillas.”

“Gorillas eh? Sounds a bit crazy,” Baloo chuckled.

“So does a pack of wolves,” Aseles added in, the soles of her boots slightly digging into the mossy ground of grass. She felt the soft mist breeze into the strands of her hair and inside her nose and mouth. It smelled so fresh and clean, like that of a spring breeze. Her dark eyes looked over to Mowgli who was now playing by the water, and was laughing from accidently splashing at Donald. The duck squeezed his hat out, but the next second was pushed accidently into the lake from Goofy bending over to pick up an rock from the waterbed. 

“But, you mentioned the Man Village. Is that where Mowgli is from?” Sora crossed his arms, tilting his head to look up to Baloo.

“No, Mowgli is from the jungle, and he’s going to stay here,” Baloo huffed in response, defensive in his clutched claws. Aseles raised a brow, and shrugged when Sora looked to her when he was asking for an explanation. 

“But….the jungle is dangerous, with the creatures running around,” Aseles stated carefully. “Mowgli was in trouble, and we were lucky to run into him.”

“I can take care of Mowgli myself, you’ll see,” Baloo jerked in response, making Aseles and Sora jumped a bit in place. Baloo walked forward, and signaled to Mowgli, “Let’s get going!”

“Alright!” Mowgli smiled in his nod, and began to trek to the other side of the lake to begin to climb the trench they had slid down to arrive.

“He seems…defensive about leaving Mowgli,” Aseles added gently, beginning to walk across the lake with a ruffled Donald and Goofy waiting at the other side.

“We’ll have to see what this Bagheera has to say, then,” Sora responded.

The striding group soon arrived to another small clearing of crushed leaves and twigs. Aseles caught sight of the large tree that stood right in the center end of the place, and saw a dark rope dangling down from one of the lowest branches. Baloo walked casually over while Mowgli snickered, waiting by Sora’s other side. 

“Ding dong!” Baloo clutched the rope, and tugged downward twice. A hiss was heard, and Aseles facepalmed to see a hanging panther had been awoken from his nap. The feline’s eyes glared to Baloo, his lower body dangling from the branch and his sharp claws strike within the bark of the tree. He then pulled himself up again, looking down at Baloo, enraged of his rude action. 

“What is it?” Bagheera questioned, rubbing the side of his face against his shoulder.

“These four here wanna get rid of those things running around,” Baloo replied. Bagheera’s eyes relaxed, and then looked downward to the four. However, he was caught off-guard, and stood erect on his four legs.

“Humans? And two odd animals?” Bagheera stood cautiously in place, “What is the meaning of this, Baloo? What have you done now?”

“I saw them! They chased off every single one to save me!” Mowgli added, though Baloo seemed to have grown pale in color when Bagheera shot a stare to the bear.

“You lost Mowgli again??” the panther snarled. “What if something happened to him?!”

“Hey, hey, relax, he’s here now,” Baloo waved his paws in front, resisting the urge to get angry at his friend, “I’ll be careful next time.”

“You gotta believe us, Bagheera,” Mowgli marched in place vivaciously, nodding hurriedly.

Bagheera looked away from the boy, and caught sight of the group looking to him now, “Who are you?”

“This is Sora, Donald, Aseles, and I’m Goofy,” Goofy introduced amiably, though Bagheera’s expression said otherwise. The feline hopped down from his branch, and now was standing before the group, keeping himself on his four legs. His body encircled around the group judiciously, and Aseles couldn’t help but feel uncomfortable of the sudden inspection. Finally, the panther stopped in front of them again, standing in between Baloo and Mowgli.

“What is your purpose here?”

“We’re here to keep the jungle safe, and get rid of the creatures that attacked Mowgli earlier,” Sora explained briefly, “We would like some help, or information about how they appeared.”

“Hmmm….I don’t believe you are the right solution to rid of our problem here in the jungle,” Bagheera cleared immediately, making the group glance at him in question. “Where did you come from? You seem to be an…odd group.”

“Well we came from the…Man Village-“

“The Man Village?” Bagheera cut off Aseles, and she nodded slowly.

“Yeah,” Sora defended gently. 

“This is…perfect! We’ve been waiting for the opportune moment, but with the creatures and Shere Khan around-”

“Nu-uh! No way!” Baloo suddenly interrupted Bagheera. “You aren’t taking Mowgli to the Man Village!” The four kept quiet, exchanging quick glances, quite unsure what topic they had carelessly touched unintentionally. Bagheera turned to look at Baloo who stood protectively in front of Mowgli. Oh boy.

“But Baloo, it’s essential that Mowgli is safe from harm’s way! Don’t you want what’s best for him?” Bagheera defended.

“Forget it! I can teach Mowgli how to live in-“ Baloo continued to argue.

“Stop pestering on that option, Baloo. Mowgli belongs with his own kind, in the Man Village. Understood?” Bagheera had tried one last attempt. Just when Aseles had thought Baloo was going to give in, Mowgli cut in, and added his own coals to the fire.

“No, I don’t wanna go! I wanna stay here with Baloo! You can’t make me go!” Mowgli spat back, hugging Baloo’s fuzzy arm. Bagheera stood on all fours now, his tail curled downward toward the floor with a sigh escaping his lips. 

It was clear to Aseles that Baloo and Mowgli were inseparable, despite Bagheera’s concern for the boy’s safety. Aseles agreed that Mowgli should go where it was safe, and with the Heartless-like beings running amok, it could only end in disaster if he stayed too long in said jungle. Also, the mention of this Shere Khan made Baloo uneasy, and Aseles wasn’t sure why, along with the rest of her group. There seemed to be more threats than one.  
Bagheera, having lost the argument looked to the four once more, sitting with his back facing Baloo and Mowgli who walked a few paces away to try to calm down, “Well, your visit seems…abrupt, but I cannot argue against your help. Truthfully, can you fight those creatures off?”

Sora nodded, “But we need information on everything that has occurred so far. Would you mind filling us in?”

Bagheera nodded and stood, walking with direction toward the trail up at the side in what seemed to be another clearing. He signaled the group to follow, and with a last glance to Mowgli and Baloo, Sora led the way. A little way up, Bagheera halted in the middle of some tall branches and petal-leaves. He sat properly up while the rest faced him respectfully. 

“It all started not too long ago; perhaps a month or so since those creatures had arrived in the jungle. At first, they were easy to confuse and defeat, but as the days wore on, they seemed to gain intelligence and strategic maneuvers. Not too long ago, it seemed that tiger Shere Khan was working with them, almost commanding them like a pack.”

“That’s why you want Mowgli to go to the Man Village, for protection,” Goofy added. 

“Precisely,” Bagheera agreed kindheartedly. 

“Why does he want to hurt Mowgli?” Sora asked next, crossing his arms.

“Shere Khan is a tiger that has always hated humans, and can’t stand the sight of them. Once word got out that Mowgli was living among the jungle, he’s been hunting him around like prey. And with those creatures running around under his command, it seems only a matter of time before we run out of options. Baloo does not comprehend the jeopardy he places on Mowgli by keeping him here,” Bagheera explained with a heavy sigh and a gaze toward their direction past the shrubs.

“Then we gotta do something,” Donald punched his feathered hand with his other white club, the group immediately agreeing to his words. 

“If you can drive those creatures away, or distract Shere Khan long enough, we can safely transport Mowgli,” Bagheera stated sternly. “However, no one dares to challenge the tiger, and convincing Baloo is….not an easy task.”

“Well, no worries, we can handle this,” Sora reassured with a smile and a hand on his hip, “We’re here to rid of the creatures; all you have to do is worry about Mowgli.” 

“Sounds like a plan,” Bagheera nodded in thanks. “Then our first course of action will be to-“

“BAGHEERA!” Baloo’s cry shook the trees and leaves, Aseles jumping in place from how close the shout was. Bagheera immediately cut through the ferns, Sora and the others following in succession of his tracks. When they came into the trail, Baloo was waddling hurriedly over, seeming to be out of breath.

“What happened?! Where’s Mowgli?!” Bagheera demanded. Aseles shot her gaze around, and in fact only Baloo was in sight. 

“There were thousands of them!” Baloo waved his arms above him, making Bagheera stare him him incredulously. “I jabbed with my left, and swung with my right!” Baloo demonstrated as he threw punches in the air in front of him.

“Get to the point!” Bagheera demanded.

“I’m telling you, those monkeys carried him off!” Baloo replied in exasperation. At said kidnappers, Bagheera’s face turned sour, and he rubbed his temple in annoyance. By recognition of his famous sigh, Aseles assumed that this wasn’t the first time they had a problem with these monkeys.

“Oh, those monkeys! King Louie is up to nothing but trouble,” Bagheera scratched his head with a paw impatiently. 

“Why don’t we help you get him back?” Sora hurriedly insisted, catching Bagheera and Baloo to look at him. 

“Would you? Surely, if you can help us-“ Bagheera swiftly ducked, Baloo jerking his paw forward and gripping Sora’s wrist.

“What are we waiting for, let’s get going!” Baloo began to tug, Sora grunting from the strong pull on his limb. Without question, Aseles and the others began to hastily follow, while hearing Sora being constantly slapped by the large leaves Baloo was pushing away in front.

“Now you can’t just go barging in inside King Louie’s place. You gotta have some style!” Baloo encouraged, dancing a bit around. 

Sora looked perplexed to him with an arched eyebrow, “Style?” 

“Not Sora’s greatest point,” Donald whispered loudly.

“I heard that.” 

LATER:

After cruising through the jungle and shrubs, this King Louie’s place was located at the far center of the thick jungle, and held within an abandoned ruins palace. The columns and pilasters seemed to be battered from old age, with vines and moss decorated along the edges and rims of the sides and bottom ends of the stone corners. Ultimately, the place seemed to be falling apart, but what Aseles heard from inside said otherwise. There was such a commotion of yips and cheers, Aseles was sure the monkeys were throwing a party. And considering the amount of sound, Aseles knew they would be outnumbered greatly. A sneak and rescue would have a low chance of succeeding…but it was worth a try. 

“Okay, so Donald and I will take the south side, Goofy and Aseles will take the west, and the two of you will take the east,” Sora laid out the plan, having drawn a blueprint on the dirt floor. “Baloo and Bagheera will distract King Louie, we snatch up Mowgli, and we run!”

“You’re making it sound easier than what we have to do,” Donald admitted bluntly, and Aseles couldn’t help but nod in agreement.

“Well….you got a plan?” Sora planted his hands on his hips snappily, but Donald and Aseles were left silent.

“It’s better than waltzing right in,” Bagheera mumbled in agreement.

“Alright, lead the way,” Aseles waved her hand while Baloo was already getting into position. The cautious panther took a quick look before following after the bear, now leaving the others to head to their destinations on the outside. Aseles softened her quick feet, Goofy tiptoeing behind her. The two peeked into the cracked gap in the stone wall, and Aseles had to believe what she was observing.  
In the middle of the Ruins was a stone throne overseeing the spacious floor. Hordes of monkeys were jumping and crying in festivity, and in the midst of it all was Mowgli who had surrendered himself to the craze. Seating in the center of it all was a large orangutan, looking smugly among his convoluted madness.

“Are we here to save him, or party with him?” Aseles whispered to Goofy who was leaning above her, squinting his eyes for a better look.

“We can do both,” Goofy naively responded, making Aseles exhale heavily of his immediate response.

“You’re too good for the worlds, Goofy,” Aseles mumbled to herself, leaning slightly forward to get a better look among the surroundings. There seemed to be opens corridors on either side of the floor; perhaps if they grabbed Mowgli at the right time, they could sneak behind a pillar and sneak away to one of the exits. 

“We’re not waiting for a signal?” Goofy questioned, but before Aseles could answer, a roar and howl of cheers arose among the air, and Aseles wanted to facepalm herself enough to leave her handprint. On the opposite side of them, Baloo had poorly disguised himself with shells of coconuts, and a leaf-dress swaying onto his wide hips. Instantly he jumped into the craze, and Bagheera could only push his paw against his face in absolute exasperation. 

“Let’s get going,” Goofy encouraged, causing Aseles to push herself inside the palace wall and duck hurriedly behind one of the stone columns. Down the opened hall, Aseles saw Donald shifting sneakily from pillar to pillar, peeking out with a strained face of what to do next. On the other side, Sora and Bagheera were making their approach, indicating where Mowgli was in the entire mess.

He was sitting on the arm of the throne chair, and was conversing with the orangutan known as King Louie. Mowgli didn’t seem to recognize Baloo, but despite their close encounter, Baloo had forgotten what the task was at hand. The leader’s rough hands formed around his mouth to impersonate a trumpet noise, and he took began to swing into the groove of the music and beats being played. 

“Go!” Sora mouthed from the other side. Aseles and Goofy began to maneuver toward the throne at the far center, seeing Donald beginning to follow from behind. 

“Goofy! Watch ou-“ Aseles clamped her mouth shut, shutting her eyes briefly to see Goofy slip on a banana peel, making her relive some sort of bad comedy sketch. Just like one, he skidded forward, and the bottom of his jaw thrashed against that of a shakily pillar. Unfortunately, it could not stand Goofy’s force and it tumbled toward the dance floor. To make matters worse, it hit against the top of Baloo’s head, and the bear stumbled in place. The coconut shells fell from his face, revealing his true muzzle and the skirt skidded down his side, and dropped flat onto the ground. The entire place drew into silence, with the exception of a few pebbles rolling, and Baloo’s droned out groan of disappoint because of the death of the party.

“Don’t just stand there, get Mowgli!” Bagheera commanded, and everything broke loose.

The four travelers all sprinted toward Mowgli, Sora and Donald taking the lead. Before Mowgli could be gripped, he was hoisted in the air by a monkey chain, causing Sora and Donald to topple over one another against the arm of the throne. Aseles and Goofy shot eyes to Mowgli who was being swung and hauled away. Baloo and Bagheera gave pursuit.

“Aim right at the monkey!” Aseles pointed with a finger, and Goofy held his shield in hand. He flicked it through the air like a disc, and caught the monkey who held onto Mowgli. Mowgli was airborne, gasping in surprise until Baloo caught him in his arms before he could hit the ground. “Not so fast!” King Louie swung from a vine, gripping onto Mowgli’s ankle, and began to carry him off. Bagheera was up next, and leapt to severe the vine off. King Louie’s arms animated wildly to make himself fall properly on the ground, but again another set of monkey created chain, and lifted Mowgli before he could make impact to the ground on his head. 

“Mowgli!” Aseles gave chase, and swung her keyblade into view. “Grab on!” Mowgli’s hands purchased the head of her weapon, and the chain stopped automatically when Aseles planted her feet firm on the ground. She found her feet skidding, but Bagheera’s wrap of his arms helped stabilize her. That is, until King Louie began to pull from the center of the monkey chain. 

“Let go!” Mowgli cried out, trying to squirm his way free.

“Heave!!!” Donald cheered as he tugged from Aseles’ arm and Baloo pulling Bagheera from behind. The group steadily pulled Mowgli back toward the ground, but the sudden cry of howls of fear startled Aseles. The next second, she toppled back and felt the pressure of Mowgli hit against her gut. She grunted loudly, cracking an eye open to stare up at the retreating monkeys, and a fazed King Louie who fled after his group.

“Mowgli, you’re safe!” Baloo carried Mowgli off of Aseles, making her able to gasp in the air she needed and stand properly on her feet.

“B-Behind you!” Mowgli shouted with a point. Aseles heard the sounds of large, flapping wings, and to her shock large Heartless-like crows were headed their way from the darkened sky. They held a single red, large eye at the center of their curved forehead, with curved beaks and talons as sharp as new shivs. Large, navy wings stretched to long lengths, and their bodies were coated in dark feathers that their ends were emerging and dissipating into dark wisps. They held a symbol down the center of their chests, but Aseles was too busy counting the entire twenty birds flocking in their direction to make out what it was.

“That doesn’t look good,” Goofy bit the edges of his fingers, gulping down.

“You guys have to go,” Sora quickly motioned to Mowgli and the two jungle animals, “We’ll handle the rest!”

“Hurry, Baloo!” Said Baloo hesitated, looking among the sky, and back to the group who was beginning to prepare themselves. 

Sora quickly waved his hand, “We’ll be right behind you!” The three native dwellers began to flee across the Ruins and into the north of the Ruins temple, leaving the four to now face the oncoming attack from above. 

The mist of black fog approached that faster, the glimmer and shine of the protruding beaks taking aim. Sora ordered for his team to spread, and they did so, Aseles taking the rear right, Donald in between her and Sora, and Goofy on the other farthest side. 

“Give it everything you got!” Sora encouraged, and sent the first attack with a Thunder spell. The crows swiftly maneuvered and cut into a fork, and began to dive in maximum speed. Aseles dashed to the side, and she swung effectively forward against two crows closest to her. With another swing, Aseles sent a spiral of flames, catching some feathers, but not enough to completely shatter their dense barrier. Behind her, Aseles winced and groaned from the strike of talons and beaks, and she swung around to push back the advancing birds to gain some ground.

At the far side, Sora was having his own share of quarrels, and blocked each swooping attack as best as he could. He grunted from the tremendous force of each strike, but did not falter on his stance. Recovering with a flinch from each attack, he directed his keyblade backwards, and sent it spinning fiercely across the air, and bringing it back to catch it in hand. Donald reverted to Fire and Thunder spells, easily able to strike against the Heartless creatures, but no later did they recover from the spells, and began to surround the duck. Goofy blocked oncoming attacks, but he seemed at a standstill, unable to advance with a blow to set himself free of his spot. The individuals began to alternate in attacks, Aseles leaping over to strike against Goofy’s crows while he skidded underneath her, and charged with shield facing forward in his arms. The crows were deflected and rammed against the ground, and once they were, Donald leapt into the air, and sent a barrage of Thunder strikes onto the ground. Sora piled the crows to attack him in one particular spot, and once in range, he blasted out a ring of Fire, catching them on target. 

After a massive cloud of black dust hitting the ground, Aseles finally settled her keyblade’s head against the ground, and rubbed the back of her shoulder to soothe it. She walked over to the disembodied of one, and peered down closely to the symbol that was hidden within the ruffled feathers on its chest. Before she could really make out what it was from the sharp angles of the representation, the crow dispersed, and again, no heart was left of its existence. 

“Everyone okay?” Sora called out, calling Aseles’ attention back to him. 

“Yeah,” Donald groaned, rotating his wand arm in place.

“We should go rejoin with the fellas,” Goofy insisted.

“And ask about this...Shere Khan. If he’s controlling these....Heartless, then we need to stop him, fast,” Sora agreed with a firm nod. “Let’s go.”

THAT NIGHT:

_She stood in the ruined landscape of dust and cracks, her eyes burning for the need to tear and close, but she couldn’t seem to. Something was preventing them from being shut, even though she knew nothing was possessing her. There, she saw him, and ran with silent footsteps, and her voice spoke with muted sound.  
His eyes gazed down to her, his brown locks whipping in the violent wind. He said nothing, but his face held of deep disposition of melancholy. As if he had just lost something very important to him, something he held so dear over the many years._

_“Terra,” Aseles mouthed._

_“Do you remember, how you got your keyblade, Aseles?”_

_She froze on instinct at the end of the question, and she cautiously shook her head, “I don’t...remember-“_

_“Your memories are important, but I believe you already know that,” Terra mouthed next, and Aseles swallowed heavily, trying to make her ears pop, or hear some sort of sound. There was none, and it was making her uneasy._

_“What does me getting a keyblade...have to do with anything?” Aseles’ eyes widened the next second, “Wait...do you know how I got my keyblade? Why I got it?”_

_Terra turned to his side, and the winds blew more rapidly, making Aseles’ feet skid along the ground. She was beginning to be pushed, but she waved her arms forward, trying to keep herself leveled to continue talking to Terra._

_“Tell me! Tell me why I got my keyblade!” Aseles asked desperately, her fingers clutching the air to stay._

_“They’re your memories, not mine.”_

_Her feet were airborne, and Aseles was sent crashing upwards into the sky, and the dark clouds thrashed to cover her view...and plunge her into the storm._

 

The sounds of the bustling jungle did not respect Aseles’ wishes to sleep, aside from the abrupt wake-up call she experienced a second ago. She laid silent for a few moments, basking in the coolness of the ground and the bark of the tree she was resting against. She bit the inside of her mouth in thought, and but when knew she wasn’t going back to sleep, she sat up. 

She looked along the small camp they made, with Donald and Goofy snoozing against each other, both pressed against Sora’s back who made a pillow of leaves and twigs. Mowgli was sleeping soundly against Baloo, but Bagheera didn’t seem to be anywhere in plain sight. He must be patrolling, or sleeping in the trees.

Now that she was awake, somewhat, she pressed her hand against her forehead to decipher the running thoughts in her head. 

Every truth had to be hidden awake, and as much as Aseles was a player in that sort of game, she wanted no more part of it. She didn’t feel as safe anymore, and didn’t feel smart enough to figure out what could be missing in that brain of hers. Something large was removed from her memories, and yet, she couldn’t even fathom what it was. The re-occurrences of Terra, and the image of the girl with raspberry streaks in her hair was so faint, she felt stupid to try to piece them together. Someone knew something about her, and it was only the matter of waiting on who ultimately...would.

Her mind was a jumbled puzzle, and bit by bit, someone, or some people had taken the essential pieces away from her to finish. Who would even bother taking them in the first place?

She stood up from her sleeping spot, and sat at the large root of the tree. Her eyes gazed over the platform of land they settled on, her eyes catching the shining glimpses of the moonlit leaves of treetops. The sky was calm and minimal of clouds, but by the color of yellow on the horizon, she knew sunrise was about to arrive soon enough.

“Hey, Aseles?” Sora’s drowsy voice lifted from the ground, and she looked back to see Sora rubbing his eyes awake, and walking over to her side. He round the large root, and took a seat next to her, running his fingers through his spiked hair, “Why are you awake so early?”

“I couldn’t sleep,” Aseles confessed with a shrug. 

“Hmm,” Sora responded thoughtfully, and sighed heavily while stretching his legs out in front of him, “How are you feeling?”

“I’m alright, you?” Aseles asked, and she rose a brow when Sora stayed silent for a second too long. The name Vanitas sprung up in her mind again, taking heed of Terra’s warning.

“I’m alright too,” Sora nodded, rubbing his hand along the side of his neck. His blue eyes circulated with a shiny coat, making Aseles look at them for a little too long. She was having suspicions of him hiding something, but who was she to say?

“Maybe...that’s how we want to feel,” Aseles added quietly, gazing ahead to the rising dawn. 

“No, feeling alright is what we’re supposed to feel,” Sora retorted gently, “It’s only a matter of how you look at things.”

“Yeah, I suppose you’re right,” Aseles sighed in defeat. A moment later, “Can I ask you something?”

“Sure, anything,” Sora nodded, resting his elbows on his bent knees, his body leaning forward.

“Why do you think you got the keyblade?”

“This question again?”

Aseles nodded carefully, her face stern, “Do you remember how you got it?”

Sora’s smile significantly dropped, and she settled himself upright, rubbing his thighs with his flat palms, “...In that storm, when everything changed. You remember me telling you, right?”

“No one gave it to you? Before then?” Aseles cut in, looking to Sora intently. 

His eyes blinked, and he quirked his mouth, “Not that...I remember. I mean...my farthest memory is....discovering Kairi at the beach. I’m...not sure by what you mean.”

“Oh...I see,” Aseles nodded gently, rubbing the back of her arm. 

“Why do you ask that?”

“...Something doesn’t seem right, and I’m not sure...what it is,” she replied gently. Sora stayed silent, but the tense silence was short-lived with the sound of bustling leaves above. Aseles and Sora stood, watching Bagheera maneuver his way down.

“This way,” Bagheera motioned his head over, and began to walk silently past the slumbering group. Aseles blinked to see Baloo was awake, settling Mowgli beside Goofy and Donald to continue slumbering peacefully. Bagheera had woken him up, and was pestering him to follow.

“I’m going, I’m going,” Baloo mumbled incoherently, and followed the panther into the brush. Sora and Aseles followed behind.

In a small patch of clearing, Sora and Aseles stood side by side, with Baloo trying to wake himself up and rubbing the side of his face that held a bruise from the commotion from earlier. Bagheera exhaled gently, preparing himself to start the assembly. 

“So what’s with the group meeting?” Baloo yawned out loud.

“It’s about Mowgli,” Bagheera stated. At that statement, the bear alerted himself a bit more, fighting the urge to snooze off.

“What about the little cub?” Baloo insisted. 

“Baloo, you cannot insist that Mowgli should stay here,” Bagheera started. Baloo was instantly unamused. 

“I thought I made it pretty clear that Mowgli is going to leave,” Baloo tried to resist a fight.

“Baloo, he has to,” Bagheera stated calmly, throwing Baloo off of his soft demeanor. The panther’s eyes frowned upon the tall bear, and he shook his head slowly, “Mowgli _has_ to go, or Shere Kan will surely get his way.” 

Baloo’s face hardened at his comment, “AH, stop your worrying and give the little kid a chance to…eh, adapt to his surroundings. I mean, look at me.” Baloo joked, nudging Bagheera on the shoulder. Bagheera narrowed his eyes and shook his head with a sigh. 

“You need to take him, while the rest of us deal with Shere Khan,” Sora replied, catching Baloo’s directed anger now. “Do you really believe that Mowgli is fit for the jungle??

“Of course he is! And I’m here to take care of him, as Papa Bear,” Baloo smiled.

“But you can’t always protect Mowgli,” Aseles took a step forward, standing alongside Sora. 

“Hey, that tiger hasn’t got a thing on Mowgli. What does he have against my little buddy?” Baloo’s face hardened. 

“Baloo, you know well enough that if Mowgli runs into Shere Khan, there’s no chance of Mowgli leaving unscathed,” Bagheera added. Baloo looked over at him, then around at the other two wielders. “You must do what’s best for Mowgli, and not for you.”

“But I promised the little buddy that he could stay here in the jungle with me!” Baloo argued lowly. 

“We know you have something special with Mowgli, but this is something that you have to do for him,” Sora closed off. “We can’t risk him being here while dealing with the tiger.”

“He won’t listen to me, Baloo, less than our new friends,” the feline nodded sternly. “You must tell him in the morning; Mowgli must head to the Man Village where he will be safe. He will listen to you.”

“But-“ Baloo scratched the back of his neck, his eyes dropping to the floor as he did. “I’ll.....can’t this wait until morning?”

Bagheera nodded to the tallest, lit ferns, “It already is....”

Baloo motioned his feet uneasily among the ground, and finally, just when Aseles though Baloo had another argument to fish out, she was relieved of what he said , “Alright, I’ll tell him.”

The next half hour restored for the Donald, Goofy and Mowgli to wake up, and resupply their water and potion intake. In secret, Sora filled in Donald and Goofy of the plan, and they instinctively nodded in agreement to kept to themselves. Everyone chose their words carefully when Mowgli awoke, and after an hour of preparation, Baloo cut into events with a loud clearing of his throat.

“So, Mowgli, why don’t we...get going huh?” Baloo smiled lightly, tussling the boy’s dark hair.

Mowgli smiled widely, and he nodded devotedly, “We going somewhere, Papa Bear?”

“Yeah, sure kid,” Baloo nodded in response.

“What about our friends?” Mowgli questioned, looking to Sora and his gang, “Are they going with us?”

“Erm...no, not this time,” Baloo waved his hand, “Just you and me, kiddo.”

“Don’t worry about us, Mowgli,” Sora smiled, “You’ll be safe with Baloo.”

“Well...thank you, for everything,” Mowgli smiled, and he waved to the group, who waved sadly back in return.

“Goodbye, Mowgli,” Bagheera exhaled, “May we meet again.” Mowgli smiled widely, and he held onto Baloo’s outstretched paw. The two closed their lock, and Baloo began to walk away, despondently into the deeper trail of the jungle. 

“Sure going to miss that kid,” Goofy sniffed, rubbing the back of his finger underneath his olive nose. 

“With Baloo gone to leave Mowgli in the Man Village, that now leaves us to make a plan to scare off Shere Khan,” Bagheera nodded. 

“We could always draw him out, use someone as bait,” Sora insisted with a hand holding his chin.

“He doesn’t like humans, so the bait would be us,” Aseles pointed between the two of them.

“Oh............right,” Sora nervously smiled, but nodded in agreement. 

“I’m a little cautious...of going with that plan, but perhaps it could work,” Bagheera nodded in agreement. 

“If we split up into teams, we can cover more ground,” Sora started. “Are there any places that Shere Khan likes to particularly hang around in?” 

“Hm, there is this one place, near a waterfall that isn’t too far from here,” Bagheera suggested. “There is also the section of bamboo near the dry plains, where the elephants roam.”

“MOWGLI!!!” The five turned abruptly toward the beginning of the trail, and Bagheera was none to short to start running at the sound. Sora and his group took off running after, and after a few minutes they came into view of the distraught Baloo.

“Baloo, what happened? What’s with all the yelling?” Bagheera huffed. 

“Mowgli! He’s gone!” Baloo rubbed his face with his paws. “I told him what you said yesterday and he ran off!” Bagheera growled under his breath. 

Sora quickly faced Aseles, Donald and Goofy, “We should split up and look for him. We don’t want Shere Khan to run into him.”

“Right!” 

“We must hurry!” Bagheera split up immediately, taking his own direction. Baloo took in pursuit of another.

“When we find him, strike a bolt into the sky,” Sora ended, “Be careful.”

LATER:

“Mowgli!” Aseles cried out, using her keyblade to push against the oncoming bushes and vines in her way. Up above, she sensed the cloud thundering and roaring into motion, the storm soon taking over the sky for the oncoming rain that was about to drop. She soon found herself into the ruined part of the jungle, and came to the edge of a barren wasteland of sorts. The whole area seemed to have burned down, with very few, ebony trees slanting. Below her walking feet, the crunch of fragile, withered leaves and twigs followed. Her eyes narrowed from the resemblance of what looked like the land in her dreams, but she shook it off, knowing it wasn’t the time to dwell on such thoughts.

“Mowgli!” Aseles called out urgently, shooting her eyes around the distance. Then, to the far left she spotted a moving, upright figure on two legs. The bright color of red bottoms cut into her few, and the little boy that wore them. “Mowgli!” Aseles gasped, hurrying over to catch up to him who didn’t seem to notice her presence. 

He adjusted himself on a rock in a small, shallow pool of dark water. Aseles slowed her pace, and when she heard the stifle of his held up tears, she frowned at how lost he seemed to be. Why would he be so sad, if his friends were only trying to keep him safe?

“Mowgli...” Aseles hurried her pace until she was a couple of yards away. Mowgli stiffened and straightened, darting his eyes over to her. Though, he didn’t move, and he slouched his head forward, hugging his knees.

“What are you doing here?” 

“I came to find you, Mowgli. We were worried about you,” Aseles now stood a yard away, “Why did you run off?”

“I don’t ever want to see Baloo. I want to stay in the jungle,” Mowgli answered as he crossed his arms. “No one wants me around….” Mowgli replied downheartedly. 

“That’s not true,” Aseles cut in . He looked back up, but he shook his head in denial. “We’re your friends, and we’re worried about you. You mean a lot to Bagheera and Baloo.”

“But Baloo lied to me. He said we would be together in the jungle,” Mowgli rubbed his eyes. 

“Baloo just wants you to be safe,” Aseles walked over, and she sat on a smaller rock than his beside. “It may not be the thing you want, but it’s better for you to leave for now, than to stay where someone wants to hurt you.”

“Why did he have to lie then?” Mowgli looked over, catching Aseles off-guard. “Friends aren’t supposed to lie to each other.”

“...How else were you going to listen?” Aseles sighed deeply, rubbing her mouth with her hand. Like the way people lied to her...to keep her safe. Should she be such a hypocrite...? “Even though....they did that to you, don’t ever think you’re alone, Mowgli.” The jungle boy lifted his face when Aseles stood, reaching a hand to him, “You’ll never be alone; your friends are always with you, in your heart no matter where you go.”

Mowgli hesitated, but he rose to his feet, and took her hand, tan locking with chocolate skin, “Do you really mean that?”

“Yeah, of course,” Aseles smiled.

“How...charming.” Aseles froze, seeing Mowgli look past her side to stare behind her. She slowly looked around, sharply capturing the large tiger graciously walking to her direction. Oh jeezes.

Aseles pushed her feet against the ground, her toes against the edges of her boots. She gently pushed Mowgli behind her back, and in the other hand she flashed our her keyblade. Though, Khan did not falter in place, his gleaming eyes fixated on Mowgli and Aseles.

“What a splendid idea; I agree, Mowgli should stay in the jungle, or else all his dear friends will miss him,” the tiger smirked mockingly. He sat properly on his legs, and he lifted a paw, extending his claws out in precision. His face was full of a vicious gentleness. 

“Shere Khan,” Aseles gritted her teeth, standing more protectively in front of Mowgli. 

“How delightful. It seems you’re not alone man-cub,” Shere Khan raised an eyebrow.

“Of course he’s not. He has his friends here to protect him,” Aseles constricted her eyes. 

“Do you honestly believe, child, that you will be able to stop me from accomplishing my goal?” the tiger teased as he looked at his extended claws, then over to her. 

“We’re not scared of you!” Mowgli cried out. Shere Khan seemed tickled by his sharp retorting. 

“It doesn’t seem you can comprehend the position that you’re in, so I’ll make this quite simple. Hand over the man-cub, and I will let you go,” Shere Khan threatened with constricted, yellowed eyes. 

“It seems you don’t know who you’re up against,” Aseles tightened the grip on her keyblade. “You won’t get to Mowgli without passing me first.” 

Shere Khan’s smirk dropped, and he took a step forward, “Alright, very well. I’ll count to ten, and see how it goes from there…” The tiger turned around, facing his back toward the two playfully. “One….two....”

“Mowgli, you have to go!” Aseles insisted.

“Three.”

“But-“ Mowgli shook his head, “What about you??”

“Four.”

“No! It’s not safe here. Baloo won’t forgive himself if you’re hurt!” Aseles gripped his upper arm, and began to tug him to the nearest tree. “Start climbing!”

“…Five....”

“But, Aseles!” Aseles gritted her teeth, and faced the turning tiger. She pointed her keyblade toward the sky, and let a large bolt of lighting escape from the tip. The clouds roared in delight, and the scene flashed against the light. Aseles saw past the flickers, and before her was the charging face of rage of the feline.

“Six-Seven-Eight-Nine-Ten!” A growl echoed throughout the air, and Aseles was quick to slam her keyblade against the slamming claws. She rolled her keyblade’s sharp head upwards, and knocked Shere Khan a few yards away. Shere Khan growled, and began to circle the tree where Mowgli hugged onto the tallest branch he could climb on. Aseles remained on guard, following Shere Khan’s motion.

“I said you aren’t getting to him unless you pass me first!” she yelled and struck downward, catching Khan’s thigh in the attack with a swing. He snarled, and quickly turned, tossing a paw forward in retaliation. Aseles blocked, but she yelled at the second claw catching her across her arm. She leapt back, but the attacks doubled in strength when Khan advanced. Aseles grunted and rolled out of the way, and struck across Khan’s snarling jaws. He stumbled back in concentration, and Aseles could see the large scar she left upwards on the side of his face. 

“You’ll pay for that you insolent child!” Khan charged once more from the side, tossing a sharpened claw against the neck of Aseles’ blade. She blocked successfully, but the sudden swing of his body weight on her made her fall back, and she held onto the slamming claws that felt down onto her. He began to repeatedly slash and attack in such strong vengeance, Aseles could felt he heat emitting from the strikes on her keyblade. She grunted loudly, and kept his bottom paws at bay with her foot against the heavy stomach. With force, Khan pressed the keyblade further against Aseles’ chest, and she gasped as he pushed his entire weight on her keyblade, helping him gain a lift to pounce onto the weak tree Mowgli was situated on. 

“MAN-CUB!” Khan pounced forward, Mowgli scrambling to hold tightly onto the branch. 

“FIRE!” A strong spray of red leapt from the side, Donald’s wand held out in front of him and knocking Khan away. Aseles shot her eyes to Mowgli who fell, and landed safely into Sora’s arms.

“Gotcha!” Sora rested him down, and spun his keyblade out in hand. Goofy rested his stance on Mowgli’s other side, and Donald and Aseles recovering to finishing the circle around Mowgli.

“You pests! Now you’ll all pay!” Khan gritted his fangs, and roared. Aseles’ eyes widened at the sudden surge of darkness around the ground. The pools of enemies began to form, and the pervious felines from before, along with some vicious apes began to merge and surround Khan. 

“Get Mowgli out of here!” Sora commanded.

“Watch out!” Aseles warned, and Donald cut in between, a spray of strong Blizzard cutting to pry away the oncoming Heartless.

“Let’s go!” Aseles gripped onto Mowgli’s hand, and she began to tug him away with Goofy dashing right behind you.

“Aseles, look out!” Sora cried out, Shere Khan running around the battling group and make his way toward Mowgli, Aseles and Goofy. 

“Mowgli!” Baloo suddenly ran from the edge of the jungle, and threw himself forward toward the dangerous tiger. Without a clear indication of where to hold, Baloo’s paws gripped around Khan’s tail, and he heaved back, halting Khan’s assault. 

“You overgrown bear!” Khan snarled and began to twist and turn, trying to pry Baloo’s grip off. However, Baloo did not oblige, and held on for dear life.

“Take Mowgli!” Goofy insisted, and Aseles nodded, beginning to tug away the small boy. 

“What about Baloo!?” Mowgli cried out, but followed nonetheless. 

“Goofy’s going to-“ Aseles flashed her keyblade in hand, and she rotated it around, knocking back the felines beasts that had managed to slip away from Sora and Donald. She gritted her teeth, and slammed her keyblade across, knocking the oncoming claws while keeping Mowgli behind her. They snarled and leapt, and Aseles growled fiercely of the constant lunging, knocking two felines out. 

“Baloo!” Mowgli cried out in horror. Aseles swiftly turned, and her eyes widened to see Goofy had been preoccupied with a thrashing ape, and Khan above Baloo. His fierce claws slapped aggressively around Baloo, and Aseles growled angrily. 

“This is the end!” Khan shouted, lifting a final paw.

“FIRE!” Sora spun his keyblade forward in a rapid spin, and it hit against Khan directly, making the tiger seethe and hiss. He tumbled to the ground, but Sora did not falter to advance, catching his keyblade and sending a surge of constant fire from the tip. Khan snarled, but redirected his attention to Aseles and Mowgli, and began to make his move.

“Afraid not!” Aseles swooped her keyblade across, and pointed it forward, “Fire!” Blazing, hot hair whipped into view, and Khan skidded to a halt, backing up from oncoming fire in his wake.

“Don’t mess with fire!” Donald teased, and grew a massive ball of flames at the tip of his wand. With a jerk, the air spewed in orange and yellow light, and the snarl of Khan erupted in the air. The half bottom of his body was coated in fire, and he began to run helplessly into the barren wasteland, disappearing into the thicket of dead trees until the flames could not be seen anymore from the heavy black of land. 

“Mowgli!” Aseles gasped, and she darted her eyes over. The others followed in pursuit after, but they all came to a slow stop behind Mowgli. The teary-eyed, jungle boy was slouching over Baloo’s limp body, crying softly to himself while brushing Baloo’s belly.

“Baloo...wake up,” Mowgli sniffed, making Aseles drop her gaze, along with Goofy. Donald swallowed roughly while Sora shook his head, exhaling deeply.

“No...” Bagheera’s arrived in slow steps, his eyes darting to Sora’s group, then to Mowgli and Baloo. He cautiously approached, and he sat down next to Mowgli, his mouth clamping shut to hide his frown. 

“Bagheera, why isn’t Baloo waking up?” Mowgli turned over to the panther.

“You know Mowgli…Baloo really cared about you. He was a dear friend of ours, a friend we’ll never forget,” Bagheera confessed. “He wanted you to be safe, and he sacrificed himself to save you. I think we owe him a lot of gratitude, and courage.”

“But-“ Mowgli began, sinking his face into the bear’s neck. “Please don’t go Baloo…Don’t go, Papa Bear.” The tears began to flood his eyes, and Aseles couldn’t help but rub her cheeks roughly, trying really hard to not cry.

“Let’s go take you to the Man Village. That’s what Baloo would’ve wanted…” Bagheera stood on his feet, and motioned Mowgli. However, as Bagheera turned to leave, Mowgli paused in his step, and the sound of mumbling was overheard, along with sniffles and coughs.

“No, don’t stop there! You’re doing great! There’s more, lots more about me!” Baloo exclaimed as he sat up, rubbing his head. 

“BALOO!” Mowgli yelled in jubilation as he threw himself onto the bear. Aseles gasped in delight, slapping her hands to her face while Sora, Donald and Goofy smiled widely. Bagheera, on the other hand, snapped.

“You were alright this whole time!?” Bagheera glared irately at the standing bear.

“Hey, it would’ve been rude if I interrupted your speech, right?” Baloo joked, tussling Mowgli’s hair.

“Papa Bear! You’re alright!” Mowgli cheered as he clung around Baloo’s stomach. “I knew you wouldn’t leave me!”

“Heheh, that’s right little britches,” Baloo hugged Mowgli, “You wouldn’t be safe, if it weren’t for our new patch of friends.”

“Yeah...” Mowgli nodded, and he looked over to Aseles with a smile, “Our friends.”

“We don’t know...how we can repay you for saving Mowgli,” Bagheera faced the group now, Baloo and Mowgli turning over. 

“We’re glad to help you,” Sora smiled warmly, “Isn’t that right guys?” Donald, Goofy and Aseles nodded with a smile. 

“I suppose, you have to get going, right?” Aseles gazed to Mowgli, who looked back to her just the same. Baloo and Bagheera looked down to him, but blinked in surprise to see him a smile, and nod.

“Yeah, I think we do,” Mowgli replied politely, and began to tug Baloo, “Let’s get going, Papa Bear.”

Baloo sighed gently, but smiled softly, “Right behind you. Let’s go, Bagheera.”

“Alright,” Bagheera scoffed gently, looking to them walking down the wasteland and to the edge of the jungle. The panther looked to the group, and he bowed his head, “Thank you kindly, for everything.”

“Take care, Bagheera,” Sora waved, and the panther got up, and began to hurriedly may his way to his two friends. Once they disappeared inside the jungle, the group reformed to face each other. 

“No Subs, but we sure made them really happy,” Sora smiled widely, “Job well done?”

“Yeah,” Aseles nodded, chuckling softly. “Odd though...by now your keyblade would’ve shined to close a keyhole.”

“Hmm...that is strange,” Sora looked at his weapon, and held it out to tap it with his free hand. His sky eyes contorted in question, but when the keyblade did nothing, Sora merely shrugged, “Maybe the keyhole doesn’t need to be locked here.”

“Guess not,” Aseles confirmed. “Heading out now?”

“Yup,” Donald nodded, and gave a thumbs up, “Let’s get going, team!” They all nodded in agreement, and looked up toward the sky, watching the gummi ship heading in their direction with the help of Sora’s guiding keyblade.


	6. Dark Matters

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hullo people.
> 
> SO. This chapter is much shorter than the others, but school is kicking my ass, I'm behind on animations, I'm behind on life, I'm behind on sleeping. I'm behind on EVERYTHING...except the getting-your-shiz-together train. I have things to work on before the month is over, and I took the liberty to type this all up over the course of two weeks. Again, I changed a few things, and I like how this turned out. IT SUCKS FOR ALL I KNOW BUT YOU KNOW WHAT. I LIKE MY SUCK-NESS. I WILL EMBRACE IT. It's a unique suck-ness no one else has, and you should embrace your flaws too because you are a beautiful human being.
> 
> Hope you all enjoy, have a good night. Next month will be LoK fanfic, so I'll see you there for! If not.......okay. Cool.
> 
> Peace.
> 
> -Keys

FFW:

Donald’s eye twitched a bit in annoyance with everyone breathing down his neck. Without anymore distractions of playing mind games, and the gang all caught up in their sleep, Aseles had averted her curious attention to the grid before Donald. She reached and rotated the three-dimensional map to look at the distance they were from The Jungle now, mostly preoccupying herself on how to place new coordinates. However, with Sora and Goofy merely poking Donald occasionally to ask if they were there yet. The duck shut down the grid, and drove the entire ride in silence. Until-

“How can I concentrate with all three of you leaning behind me?” Donald groaned in strained patience.

“We played Charades about fifty times already,” Sora rested his chin in his hand, his elbow rested on the top of Donald’s chair. 

“And Goofy guessed them all right,” Aseles looked over to Goofy grinning triumphantly. She shook her head with a small chuckle, feeling a nostalgic welcome warming her skin. 

Her slumber consisted of nothing but a sweet, silent dream, which was she very grateful for. Although, her visits with Terra were informative, she couldn’t handle having to constantly wonder about it; it was emotionally and mentally exhausting to prepare her endless brick wall of defense for whatever next thing he was going to say. Needless to say, it didn’t make sense for him to be able to communicate with her…unless they have met in some way. No….she couldn’t recall anything, as usual. Communicating through dreams was already something she didn’t want to experience yet again.

She exhaled sympathetically to her wrecked brain, but motioned her gears back to the moment in time, smiling at Sora’s poking over Donald’s shoulder. Donald mumbled in retaliation, but Sora continued to mess with the controls of the lights inside the cockpit.

“Sora, what are you doing?” Donald questioned.

“Entertaining myself,” he admitted bluntly, “though, I think we’re headed to the next world.” His finger pressed upon the grid, and out inflated the visual of the gummi ship. In the distance of the grid, a small orb was approaching.

“Oh, right there!” Goofy smiled with a point, and automatically, everyone’s face filled with absolutely delight.

With a quick leap from the opening hatch, Aseles felt the sun kiss her skin, and watched the gummi ship cut across the clouds in haste. Her face turned to look at the stretched terrain of rough land, and her eyes appraised the golden, warrior statues clanging their sword together above the entrance to the Olympus Coliseum. 

“Some things never change,” Sora smiled widely. His eyes whirled around, and he smiled at the appearance of the town in the distance, “But hey, I could be wrong.” The air was spacious, and the residents of Olympus were more prominent than before. Women wore robe-like attires while the men strutted past with armor and powerful stride. Aseles rolled her eyes at the constant stares to her and her group, but of course, she was used to it. 

“Say, let’s go check out the stadium, and see if Phil and Herc are inside,” Sora suggested.

“Then let’s get going!” Goofy tossed a thumbs up. The four gave an assured nod, and began to make their way toward the bronze doors underneath the deep shade of the Coliseum. 

Suddenly, Aseles felt a shudder of cold dance along her arms, and she whirled around to see the dynamic of people splitting in different directions, and the monstrous pools of dark bubbling out of the ground. The armored and elongated hounds dug their way from the craters, and with sharp snarls, they surrounded the group in the matter of a second. 

“Ready?” Sora slashed out his keyblade, the others following suite in their weapons. 

“Ready!” 

The four charged into the fray, Aseles immediately catching two hounds in her way and tossing them aside to combat. Donald shot his wand upwards to counter back with a Thunder, while Goofy rode on his shield like a skateboard to knock back the hoard of cluttered dogs. Sora drew onto the offensive, deflecting and slamming the head of his keyblade in sharp slashes. The pool of darkness began to condense, but the sprouting of hounds began to grow immensely, and soon the group found themselves completely surrounded and huddled back to back. 

“Well, this took a turn,” Aseles exhaled, holding her keyblade defensively in front of her.

“Over here!” The jolt of a new voice forestalled the attack of the hounds, and they twisted to lunge in the opposite direction toward the new fighter that had approached. 

His dark eyes locked onto each charging wolfhound, and with quick precision of his bare, sharp sword, the Heartless beasts met their demise. After taking out each individual beast on his own, the last one hit the ground, and was stabbed at the back of its head for an immediate kill. The male lifted his sword with a strong tug, and he wiped his forehead with a gloved hand. 

The man’s face lifted, his spiked hair slightly bouncing on his head. A dashing smile grew onto his face, pearly whites clearly used to displaying. His body attire consisted of a collared, navy shirt, and a brown harness for his blade stretched around his back and chest. Bottom half, he dusted off his dark cargo pants, clearly tucked in his tall, black boots. On his left shoulder he wore shoulder armor, and brown, leather gloves stretched on his large palms.

“You guys alright?” the vivacious savior stood in front of the group, his sword pushed back into the sheath of his blade. Aseles felt the crease of pink over her face, and she cleared her throat, running her fingers quickly through her hair. The crowd of civilians began to refill the roads, all of them clapping at the handy-heroic work and the male bowed his head in respect in recognition of their thanks.

“Yeah, thanks for the hand,” Sora smiled back with a nod. “Oh, I’m Sora, this is Donald, Goofy and Aseles.”

“You look like an interesting bunch, The name’s Zack,” he crooked a grin, rubbing his toned arm to release the tension that built. “But it’s nice to meet you all. Hopefully those creatures don’t come back again.”

“Oh, you’ve already dealt with them before,” Sora blinked in surprise, scratching the back of his neck, “Well, it’s good to know someone is able to keep everyone safe.”

“Not from around here, are you?” Zack crossed his arms, rubbing his chin in thought as he took a step to the side, eying Sora closely, “But, something is familiar about you.” Sora shrugged, followed by Zack who waved a hand to dismiss the random comment, “Hmm, keyblade huh?”

“Uh, yeah,” Sora smiled.

“Two, if you count Aseles,” Goofy placed his hands on her shoulders, giving a smile. Aseles smiled nervously when Zack looked over to her.

“Ohhh….I see,” Zack exaggerated a nod, “Then something surely brought you here. Was it to help get rid of the monsters, or are you here to battle in the Coliseum?”

“Why not both?” Sora grinned, winking with a thumbs up.

“Heh, I like the way you think!” Zack beamed. “What are we waiting for then? Follow me.” The warrior began to lead the way with Sora, Aseles, Donald and Goofy right behind.

Inside, the group encountered the torch-lit room, with varies statues and trophies on either side of the stone chamber. In spite of the roaring fires to keep the place lit, it was very cool and shady, making Aseles sigh in relief from the hot humidity outside. 

“Phil, you in here?” Zack called out with his hands on his hips. 

“Who is yapping away in my Coliseum??” The stubby satyr hooved into view, arriving from the darkened hall leading out to the matching arena. His small eyes widened at the sight, and Sora quickly went over, banging knuckles to the goat-man.

“Nice to see you, Phil,” Sora’s face stretched into a joyed grin.

“Look at what the Olympian gods brought me,” Phil crossed his arms, chuckling in approval, “my pack of heroes. How you been?” Man, was the refreshing to hear for Sora and Donald who waggled their brows at one another.

“We’re doing pretty good, what about you?” Donald started first. 

“Doing great, kid,” Phil looked over to Zack, “See that you met the other trained hero from Thebes.” 

“Heh,” Zack bubbly answered, and waved a hand off, “Just helping them out.”

“Where’s Herc?” Goofy looked among the chamber.

“Working off steam, kid. Been toughing him up for the upcoming tournament.”

“Another one?” Aseles blinked.

“Yup, this will be the ultimate battle of battles with many battles. Not going to let Herc take a break until he’s fully prepared for this one.”

“Don’t you already do that?” Donald questioned.

“That’s not the point,” Phil defended with crossed arms. “Anyways, the Gods of Olympus will be hosting it, and I hear there’s a pretty good prize for the winner.”

“Sweet!” Sora and Zack leaned forward, grinning. Phil nodded as he stroked his beard, “I can only guess you guys will all be planning on entering, right?” 

“YE-“

“WRONG!” Phil interrupted.

“Huh? We can’t enter!?” Donald argued.

“What gives!?” Zack added with flared out arms. Even in his twenties, Zack seemed like a teenager. 

“This is what happens when you don’t let me finish,” Phil narrowed his eyes. “You can still enter. Except, you can’t join it together as a group,” Phil stated. “Only one person per entry.”

“Hmmm, what’s the prize though?” Goofy scratched the top of his head, adjusting his hat slightly. Everyone leaned, and Phil gave a huff and a strong nod. 

“I have no clue!” Phil exclaimed. The rest groaned at his response. 

“It must be good if Phil doesn’t know, right?” Sora supported. 

“Looks like it. Where do we sign up?” Zack questioned. 

“See this box?” Phil pointed toward a locked crate that stood on a small podium at the entrance. “You just place your name in there, and you’re all set!”

“…That’s it?” Donald interrogated. 

“Yup, pretty much. Well, I gotta set up the training grounds. Be sure to come out when you’re ready,” Phil began to stride through the darkened hall. Sora and Zack shared a stare, and the two hurried their way to the box, and both began to strain for the pencil and pieces of parchment laid out. Aseles snuck from the side, reaching and gripping another pencil, and three blank pieces of paper. She walked back to Donald and Goofy, and she looked to them with a smile. 

“Want me to write your names down?” she asked. 

“Oh, why thank you,” Goofy chuckled as Aseles was quick to write down their titles. She then she slipped back around the grunting Sora and Zack who were trying to write their names as quick as possible. 

She slipped in the notes, and she signaled Donald and Goofy to follow, “Maybe we can help Phil set up too…while they…handle their differences.”

LATER:

Out on the field, Phil had set up five catapults, each carrying one barrel. As a test, he let one activate its spring free, and it shot a barrel forward toward Zack’s way. Zack sliced it right in half at the exact mark, and left nothing but splinters, metal and pieces land on the ground. The catapult swung backwards, and it locked into its first position. Another barrel rolled into its place; each catapult harbored ten barrels on a slanted ramp, and Aseles knew already what the practice was at hand. Kind of…looking forward to it?

After each fighter sent themselves in front of an individual machine across the distance, they prepared themselves willingly with weapon in hand. Aseles exhaled, looking over all the way from the other end to see Goofy, Donald, Sora and Zack watching Phil for instruction. The satyr remained standing at the farthest catapult, with his hand gripping onto a rope to activate all mechanisms at the same time. Sora and Zack shared a competitive grin, while Donald merely rolled his eyes at the childish bearing Sora still managed to display. 

“Alright! Keep two things in mind! Keep your eye on the barrels. Organize your timing! And don’t get distracted!” Phil ordered wisely. Goofy counted with his fingers as Aseles sweatdropped at Phil’s horrible and familiar counting. 

“That’s three-“ Zack began.

“Begin!” Phil cut his arm across, and the rope at his hand released all barrels forward. Aseles gripped her keyblade tightly in hand, and she swung across forcefully, sending the wooden object across the way, and making it slam and break against the ground. A lock chimed from the distance, and Aseles quickly regained her keyblade to hold it like a bat, preparing for the next.

“Bring ‘em on!” Donald shouted as he launched another Blizzard spell to his second barrel, creating a fallen mist on the broken pieces.

Sora grunted as he slammed his barrel upwards, making it spin uncontrollably before it began to fall heavily, and slam behind him onto the stone bleachers. Goofy’s handy shield circled back from his toss, but not even the sharp edge could compare to Zack’s constant accuracy of making all three barrels thus far cut cleanly in half. Zack was tough, and rapid, just by the way he handled his sword. 

“How are you doing?” Zack called out to the four.

By the fifth barrel, Aseles felt the strain in her arms. They chocked from the constriction that was surfacing, and the hot itch crawling along her inner elbows and shoulder blades. Aseles tried her best to ignore the sensation, and proceeded to ram her keyblade’s head forward. However, now on the sixth, she felt the complete weight of her strength drop significantly. The barrel merely rolled out of her way, and Aseles gritted her teeth to find the seventh now launching right to her. Her inexperience after the last months were beginning to show. 

“Three more to go!” Phil encouraged, but Aseles could not push the sharp pain at the back of her chest. 

_“Just have a little push.”_ Aseles’ eyes widened at the abrupt sound in her ears, and in spur of a second, Aseles found the palms of her hands sparking with….dark flickers. Her eyes shot down, feeling something hold her in place; this wave of this new presence was unwillingly for her to move.

“Look out!” Phil’s voice shot out, and Aseles slammed her keyblade upwards, cutting the barrel right in half of its approach. The clean halves parted in the air, with a fog of Darkness wavering almost instantly out.

_“That’s it.”_ Aseles’ teeth snapped shut, and she crushed the ninth barrel down to her feet, making it squash its entire exterior against the ground, and making the bottom and top blow out from the force. 

_”One more.”_ She shouted as she swung her keyblade across, making the barrel slam right into Goofy’s last barrel, and the two crashed into the ground, ceasing to exist completely intact. 

“And it’s over!” Phil portrayed his arms in front of his chest, signaling everyone to stop. Aseles extended her fingers out fully, her breaths heaving greatly from the sudden control she just had. What….why was Darkness inside her body?

That time, when she broke out of the Organization XIII headquarters….Or when Ihara invaded her body—why was Darkness now apparent? Didn’t she get rid all of it out? 

“Aseles, you alright?” Aseles shot her eyes around, seeing Goofy had gripped her shoulder, and gave her a small shake. 

Aseles dropped her hand, her keyblade tightly gripped in the other, “Yeah, I’m….fine.” Goofy arched a brow, obviously not buying her hesitated answer. Aseles shook her head, and instead looked past Goofy to see Donald spinning his wand in hand, and Sora and Zack sharing an impressed glance at one another. 

Sora wiped out the sweat from his temple, smirking at Zack, “Not bad.”

“Think so? Could say the same about you,” Zack scoffed, hardly breaking a sweat. “Had that keyblade for a long time, haven’t you?” 

Sora waved his hand to and fro in front of him, “More or less. Not too long ago, but enough to know how to use it.”

“Man, haven’t met a lot of them,” Zack hummed, crossing his arms, “Maybe a few, but…my memory is kind of foggy.” Sora tilted his head, but looked behind to see Goofy and Aseles now approaching. 

“Good?” Sora asked. Goofy gave of thumbs up while Aseles nodded sharply. 

“Never thought you could handle a shield like that, and those spells, man! You really have them down,” Zack chuckled. Donald puffed out his chest in triumph while Goofy chuckled, scratching his nose. “Say, saw that little spark of power you had there,” Zack looked to Aseles for attention, making her somewhat stiffen in place.

“Erm, it was nothing,” Aseles shook her head, rubbing the back of her neck. To quickly change the subject, Aseles looked over to the approaching trainer, “So Phil, when is this tournament?”

“In another month,” Phil nodded with arms crossed. “You still have a lot more training to do. You coming over, Zack?”

“Eh, I’ll catch up with you later,” Zack waved a hand. Phil waved to the rest of them, and made his way from the stadium. 

“Plan to go somewhere else?” Sora indicated an opened hand to Zack.

“Hmm, not sure. What about you bunch?” Zack rested his hands on his hips. “Kind of curious to see where you might go.”

“Well, since Hercules isn’t here right now,” Sora started, tapping his chin. 

“Maybe we can visit Auron,” Goofy suggested with a snap of his fingers.

“Oh, right! Good idea!” Sora grinned, his orbs of contained skies catching Zack, “Want to tag along? Though it’s in the Underworld; not sure how you might feel about that.”

“The Underworld?” Zack narrowed his eyes, dropped his soft guard down. “Wait….did you say..Auron?”

“The one and only,” Sora blinked, “why, what’s wrong?”

“Hmmm…not to dampen your mood, but nothing good has come out of the Underworld. I mean, nothing ever does, but there are rumors of this…Auron attacking anyone who dares to go inside.” Sora and the gang exchanged glances.

“No no, that can’t be the Auron we know,” Sora defended. “He would never do that.”

“Then we should check it out,” Aseles offered, “and see for ourselves.”

“Alright, well, if you’re going, then I’m tagging along. Gotta make sure you guys stay out of trouble,” Zack wagged a finger.

“Don’t mind the company, though, I would settle for you not babysitting us,” Sora scoffed jokily.

“Fair enough,” Zack insisted, tussling Sora’s spiky strands, making the brunette grumble and wave him off.

AT THE UNDERWORLD:

The hazy-looking atmosphere seemed to have gotten much darker than Aseles had remembered. Her memory served her no help to figure out the path they were headed, but stopping below the white steps was a good start to try to calm her nerves. 

Last she had heard of Auron was back when he had managed to rescue her from Hades, but so far from that, nothing. She knew Sora, Donald and Goofy held a tighter bond with the soldier, so she made no moves to make some suggestions of where he might be. 

“Where do you wanna start looking?” Goofy asked, his eyes looking toward the extended land of dark ground and colored mist. Aseles inspected the two wide doors on either side, knowing for sure that the one on the left led to Hades’ hideout. 

“Hmm….I’m not sure,” Sora scratched the back of his head, “It seems….some of this has changed. Maybe we’ll cover more ground if we split up.”

“Okay, I hate to burst your bubble, but that doesn’t sound like a good plan,” Aseles cut in, making all eyes land on her. “We don’t know what Auron will do to us if we run into him. Or if we run into anything else.”

“You’re making it sound like Auron won’t recognize us,” Sora frowned, making Aseles look to him doubtfully. “Hmm, but I see your worry. Then, we’ll split up into teams?”

“Sounds better than traveling alone,” Donald added, sighing in relief. 

“Alright, then the four of you can go in pairs, and I’ll trek on my own,” Zack grinned confidently, “And if we don’t find anything, we’ll head straight back here.”

“Alright, sounds good,” Sora nodded, “I’ll take Aseles.” She looked over to him with an arched brow, but Donald and Goofy complied with a quick nod. 

“Donald and I will go this a-way,” Goofy thumbed to the cavern at the right. Aseles exchanged glances between the group, but before she could ask why the sudden pair, she was hugged around the arm, and led by Sora leading to the cavern on the left. 

“Uhhh….” Aseles blinked, but soon found herself and Sora already making way through the entrance of the rock walls. 

A few minutes into it, Aseles wiggled her arm, making Sora glance at her questionably. She smiled nervously, then he blinked in realization. He released his hold on her, and now the two were walking side by side. 

“Sooooo, what do you think about Zack?” Sora asked. 

“Erm…he’s a good fighter,” Aseles responded naturally. “Why do you ask?”

“Just curious. I mean…when he came over, I felt something familiar about him,” Sora hummed, tapping the center of his chin. 

“What do you mean?” Aseles crossed her arms, feeling a little chilly once the fog rose to her knees.

“I don’t know. Is it odd to say I felt like I’ve met him before?” the brunette rested a hand on the back of his spiked hair, threading his fingers fully across and up to fling a stretch overhead. 

“Maybe you have, and you’ve forgotten,” Aseles shrugged gently. The two began to make their way around the bend of a large boulder, and tread into the open area of settled stones and columns. Subconsciously the two stopped talking, and set their sights across the empty land of darkened fog and caved walls. As far as Aseles was concerned, no one was here…or nothing was. 

Everything was abandoned to the core of the Underworld, and with Hades no longer around (from what Sora had described was a defeat when they had freed Auron’s will from Hades) there was no chaos being produced. Aseles could feel the stretch of cobwebs along the inner cracks of the walls, and the dust picking up every time she took a step. She could feel the prickle of the lonesome air, sticking onto the only living things inside of it. Even if everything was unmovable, Aseles could still feel the thousands of eyes sinking into her bones. The eerie atmosphere was maximized knowing that only the two of them were in here. But…where was Auron?

“So….that sudden Darkness-“ Aseles’ eyes widened, and she shot her head around, seeing Sora continuing to look ahead, “-not planning on telling us what happened?” Okay, to her credit, she hoped no one noticed. It was kind of stupid thinking about it now, but jeezes man, for once she wanted to get away with such a freak out. 

“Um, it’s not that- you don’t-“ Aseles stammered, but she slumped her shoulders, stopping in her tracks once Sora did. He looked to her concerned, but Aseles could see a mix of restraint irritation.

“Aseles, I don’t see why that should be something to hide,” Sora quirked his mouth. “That’s something you should be telling us about. But….you just don’t seem to get the idea that we’re concerned about you.”

“It’s hard to explain,” Aseles argued back, now feeling the annoyed irritation building in her squeezed ribs. Not this again.

“It always looks like it is,” Sora started with a faint edge to his words.

“I don’t know why it came up, okay?” she defended now, throwing her arms out at her sides, “If I knew, I would be able to tell you. I don’t, SO, I can’t. Alright?”

“I don’t want to argue, but the last thing I need is for us to go through this again,” Sora’s eyebrows furrowed in a ravine. “Last time, we-“ BOOM.

A loud burst sent a cloud of debris down the tumbled rock wall. The medium sized boulders rolled across the ground, making Sora and Aseles back up hurriedly, and face the fashioned opening. With a harsh cough from the dust, Aseles was able to clear the smoke away from her face. 

“What was that?” Sora readied himself with his keyblade, signaling Aseles to do the same. The two squinted their eyes to clarify the space, and it was there Aseles caught eye of the hazy figure emerging from the dark shadows. 

A maroon coat hung over the man’s bulky exterior, with a drawn sword over his right shoulder. The smoothed black hair held gray strands at the perked-back sides, and his face was nearly shrouded in the collar of his coat. His left arm was hooked in the interior of his cloak, resting idly. 

“Auron!” Sora smiled widely, but the man was unmoved of the warm welcome. He harbored a paled look on his face, and his eyes were…cloudy. Distant. Absent of actually being eyes. A sinister hold was circling along the man.

“Sora,” Aseles warned, and she gripped his arm, preventing him from advancing. 

“What?” Sora’s grin dropped, aware of Aseles restrained approach. When the two looked over again, Auron’s face had lifted, and the grip on his blade’s handle tightened making the two wielders stiffen in stance. “Whoa, Auron, easy,” Sora held his hand out, but instead, the warrior held his blade in front of him, the tip facing the two travelers resolutely. 

Sora held his keyblade cautiously in front of him, his body moving to cover Aseles, “Auron’s being controlled.” 

“By who? Hade’s isn’t-“ Aseles gritted her teeth, seeing Auron’s blade now turned to the side. He was ready to strike. 

“Run, Aseles!” Sora whispered, “We have to get back to the others!” Auron sprinted across, Sora meeting his blade with harsh sparks of connected metal. “I’m right behind you!” 

Aseles cut her way back through the fog, her keyblade tightened in her grip. Her eyes tried to cut through the thick fog, but she nearly crashed into a boulder, swerving to the side and continuing her haste. Behind she looked to see Sora was approaching, his feet thudding hurriedly across the ground. The sound of clashing boulders indicated Auron was fast approaching, and cutting through everything that stood in his way. Aseles and Sora both sent continuous waves of Blizzard, hoping to make Auron skid along the ground, or trip against the rock wall. But the man was a trained Olympian, sending crashing boulders in their direction. Sora quickly blocked the debris while Aseles sent gushes of fire in front, dispersing the fog to make a clear path forward. They finally arrived at the first clearing of the opened camber, but both fighters were airborne, and crashed against the gravel floor. 

Aseles seethed from the sharp discomfort on her side, her eyes looking over to see Sora sitting up, gripping his arm to soothe it. Silence filled the chamber, but Aseles knew they were just a rock wall away from the group on the other side. 

“We have to get moving,” Aseles warned. Her ears picked up the sound of something charging, and she proceeded to help Sora up, tugging him to the side hurriedly. A wave of sharp Darkness burned bright lavender, and it banged against the rock wall like a heavy pillar. Auron’s strides were purposely forward, and he lifted his blade with another strike.

“Move!” Sora ordered, and Aseles was not one to argue. She rolled along her side, and dashed to reach the other end of the cave. However, Sora’s sudden cry cut the air, and Aseles whirled around to see Auron’s Darkness had slashed along his forearm, the keyblade trembling in his grip. 

“Sora, watch out!” Aseles shouted, but Sora was now knocked back, and he hit the ground roughly, rolling to a stop. She gritted her teeth and ran, Auron now turning to target Aseles. She slashed her keyblade repeatedly against the man, but it was obvious Auron was much more advanced in combat. With a sideways swing, Auron skid Aseles across the ground, but she held her own two feet to keep her stance. She slammed her keyblade down, knocking Auron’s defense off, and took the opportune moment to strike against his front, making him stumble and hit the ground on his side. 

Dashing across the space, Aseles arrived at Sora’s side, and began to hook his arm over her shoulder. Her eyes shifted to that of the cut across his arm, and she grimaced at the flow of Darkness that was beginning to uphold his skin. It was something she had never seen before, as if…his arm were infected.

“You have to be kidding me!” Aseles hissed, darting her eyes around to see Auron had gotten up, and was sprinting to her direction. His hand clasped his sword from the ground, and freely began to attack. Aseles dropped Sora quickly on the ground, and made her keyblade spark against the combating weapon at her face. However, she suddenly lost balance from Auron’s gliding kick, and she fell back to land next to Sora. Her eyes shot up, watching Auron tower above her. He lifted his blade over his head, making the brunette hold her keyblade out with both hands to shield her.

“I don’t think so.” The low voice emitted, and in the flash of a dark wisp, she saw Sora was standing, his back to her. Auron was sent in a spiral, and he hit the ground in the opposite direction. His blade clattered out of his hands, and he didn’t move soon after. Aseles’ eyes widened, her gasps filling her lungs of the awakened Sora. She raced to her feet, took a step back, and felt the unsettled crawl up her neck. It wasn’t the fact that Sora’s hair had dipped into darker strands, or the illuminating navy color surrounding the handle of his keyblade. It was the golden eyes directing back to gaze at her sinisterly. The edge of the male’s mouth twitched, and Aseles could feel something menacing radiating from Sora. 

“Surely, you wouldn’t have been beaten by a mere sword, would you?” Sora droned out deeply. Aseles gripped her keyblade securely, “Who are you?” The wounds around Sora’s bare skin began to close up with dark steam, leaving nothing of a scratch of a prior fight. His occupied hand lifted, and there he began to examine the keyblade he held in his grip. 

“This feels….different,” Sora tilted his head to the side, clicking his tongue with a mocking tone. Then, his eyes again drifted to Aseles, and a sneer rose to his lips. Aseles felt the stinging pain at the back of her neck, and she was sure something was trying to tell her to make a run for it. 

“Who…are…you?” Aseles breathed out with a slight growl.

The male spun the keyblade proficiently in his hand, like a trained color-guard, “You’re quite demanding. I don’t like that.” The dark-haired wielder faced Aseles, and he began to steadily walk forward, holding his keyblade out. 

“Not another step!” Aseles commanded with fierce defiance. 

“Or you’ll do what?” Sora mocked, chuckling deeply. Aseles held her keyblade out, but what she didn’t expect was Sora to stand in front of it, and grind his keyblade’s neck slowly against hers. The staggering contact of metal made her skin fidget, along with the vicious grin splattered on Sora’s face.

“Another wielder, huh? Must be ages since I met another female that holds one,” the male toned out smoothly, “Of course, the last one didn’t really end up in lucky circumstances.”

“Tell me who you are,” Aseles threatened, sliding her keyblade more forcefully to the side. Suddenly, her hand sparked with a burn, and she hissed. Her keyblade shot across the area, and clattered to the ground from the brute smack Sora released. Her eyes caught sight of weapon’s head right in between her eyes. Her body froze in place, but she was obligated to lift her chin when the keyblade tucked at the base of her throat. She was now staring at Sora who made himself comfortable in front of her, his dark eyes looming and inspecting her dark blue orbs. 

“This seems comfortable. Could have you lean a little closer,” Sora smirked. 

“Tell me, who you are,” Aseles exhaled out, gritting her teeth. 

“You can call me Vanitas, demanding little girl,” the possessed Sora replied coolly, “I am the Darkness that has resided in Sora, and I believe it’s about time he’s awakened this side of him. I wouldn’t mind playing pretend for a bit, might be fun.”

“I can guarantee you that it won’t last another minute,” Aseles threatened. 

“You know, that’s something I don’t like in a person,” Vanitas shot his free hand, and gripped Aseles by the front of her dress. “When they don’t know when to give up.”

“Then you’re going to _love_ me!” Aseles shot a fist up, blocked by Vanitas. Occupied by her punch, Aseles sent a strong kick to the lower half of his stomach. The male staggered back, but gored his keyblade to the ground to prevent from falling. His head shot up, seeing Aseles rushing to her keyblade, and pick it up with a brief bend to the ground.

“Sure, I can play!” Vanitas grinned, and slashed downward. A wave of Darkness raced across the gravel in Aseles’ direction, and she wasted no time in dodging it before combating with a Thunder spell. Vanitas easily blocked it, and the two wielders raced to meet at the center of the area.

“Argh!” Aseles growled, slamming her keyblade across. However, it merely phased through a mirage of Vanitas. “No, where-“

“Here!” Aseles groaned sharply, and she faltered forward to swung backwards. Vanitas flipped off the air from being upside-down. He spun his keyblade in hand, whistling in content. 

“Cheap shot,” Aseles muttered, feeling the stinging pain spread across her back. No doubt it was his Darkness. Is that how Sora got possessed? 

“Is that all you got?” Vanitas teased. Aseles tightened her eyes, and she yelled in fury with a leap. Vanitas leapt to the side, and Aseles took the opportunity to let a Fire blaze in a pinwheel. She sent it rocketing forward, catching Vanitas directly. The male gritted his teeth in agony, quickly cutting the fire in half with the swing of his blade. However, his eyes shot up, and met the clanging of Aseles’ down-strike. With a kick to the side of his head, Vanitas rolled on the ground, landing on his front and facing Aseles. She swiftly backed up, seeing Vanitas angrily get up, and wipe the liquid from the cut across his temple. 

“You’re becoming a nuisance,” he replied with an irritated expression mounting along his eyebrows and clamped teeth.

“Better reason for you to leave,” Aseles suggested coldly, “But that wasn’t a request.”

“Makes you wonder why I’m here, right, Aseles?” Vanitas spread his arms in front of him, “Obviously, I’m here, because he’s not powerful enough to fight me back. I’ve gotten this far, and I don’t plan to be kept inside like a prisoner.”

“You’re going to have to deal with it, because that’s where you’re going to end up being!” Aseles positioned her feet promptly on the floor, facing Vanitas directly.

“That’s what you think…” Vanitas stood straighter, and sprinted. Aseles stood at the ready, but with only a step forward, she was all but surrounded by rotating Vanitas’. She held her ground, her eyes shifting back and forth to find the right wielder. 

“Sora, you have to come back!” Aseles cried out, and she swung to the left, catching a Vanitas…that ended up being an illusion.

“Wrong one,” Vanitas struck from the right, and sent Aseles rolling across the ground. Aseles gritted her teeth, but the relief was short-lived as she saw Vanitas reappear in front, and slam his keyblade upwards. It caught center of her stomach, sending her airborne. Aseles tried to recollect a form of direction, but the next second she was send summersaulting backwards. She screamed harshly, and her body made contact with the hard ground. She could hear the clatter of her bones strain, but she knew she must’ve broken something at this point. The ash and pebbles wavered along her head and arms, coating her sense of consciousness.

“Ugh,” she moaned in ache, unable to get up from her limp position. 

“I here I thought you were going to put up a challenge,” Vanitas voice sunk from behind. 

Aseles swiftly pointed the tip of her keyblade over her shoulder, “Freeze!” A sharp growl emitted into her drums, the coat of frost running along her back. With a quick roll, Aseles dodged the keyblade striking into the ground, and began to make her way to the rock entrance.

“Leaving so soon?” The air combusted in a black abyss, Aseles backing up as the dark clouds began to swirl and vortex her surroundings. 

“C’mon, Sora,” Aseles grumbled, unpleased of Vanitas’ curiosity to keep her here. She swung upwards to wound the force field collapsing on her. The air began to settle, but the ominous feeling behind her grappled her spine. She turned, and was facing Vanitas directly. His dark-gold orbs seeped into her, locking her pupils to shrink in place. 

“Now, this is a strange predicament you’re in,” Vanitas began, and his hand snatched forward, gripping the base of Aseles’ throat. She gasped from the fierce blow on her jugular, and felt the bubbling air popping painfully slow. She gripped onto his wrist, shutting her eyes briefly before staring at Vanitas directly. 

“A wielder entitled to Light, but it seems…something else is stirring inside you,” Vanitas continued inquisitively. “Something that is…born inside you. Evolved, _grown_.”

“L-Let go…” Aseles breathed out harshly, feeling the fingers dig, making her wince. 

“Enlighten me, Aseles the Wise,” Vanitas mocked with a great sneer, “What is it that you’re afraid of…the most?”

Wise. Ansem. Ansem the Wise. 

On that bridge, the vision of the heart-filled moon in the distance. The machine that ended his life. 

His….his eyes looking at her. 

Her dad. Her dad.

_“Why are you doing this? Don’t you want to go home? Where we can be safe?”_

That’s all she wanted. That’s what she wanted the most. Her friends were important, but so was he. He was so important to her. She had to save him. She had to save him from himself. From his research, from Xemnas. From….everyone. 

Ansem, why didn’t you go?

_“As long as Organization XIII still exists, I cannot rest.”_

No….they could leave. And he could….tell her everything she needed to know. 

Always in the dark, she was always in the dark even when she didn’t want to be. That’s all she ever was….and that’s what she’s become a part of. That’s all she will be…if no one tells her anything. 

A puppet, a pawn for someone to manage her. Who was she? Who was she? A puppet in their game?

_“Right now is not the right time….._

_This is why….._

_This is not about us....this is about the worlds.”_

“Not…….you,” Aseles hissed out. Her gears began to rocket rapidly into work, and she could feel this developing chain wrapping around her spine. Her fingertips began to illuminate a bright emerald, Vanitas swiftly shooting his eyes down to them.

“What the hell?” Vanitas winced, but he did not let go. Aseles could feel the encasing, green form surfacing along her body, and the next second, a whipping colored tornado began to lash her hair at the sides of her head. Like opened wings, her hair expanded, and her eyes began to glimmer a green shine. They looked onto Vanitas, who was now struggling to keep his grip on her. 

With a strong kick to Vanitas’ stomach, the male let go, rubbing his scorched wrist. He lifted his keyblade above his shoulder, head pointed to her. His eyes widened as Aseles stood promptly on her feet. Her hiss circled around her neck, and she did not miss a beat to stab her keyblade on the ground. A crack infused and spread like healing poison, the veins scattering like the neurons of a brain. The next moment, a springing of green vines slashed and rose from underneath, and curved themselves to surround Vanitas. The male took initiate to push them back, but Aseles did not waste time for him to escape, and sent a collective amount with the keyblade as her controller. Her hair continued to kick around her, and she took the chance to wrap the vines around Vanitas’ ankles and wrists. 

“You pathetic girl,” Vanitas snarled, and with a swung around, he cut himself from his prison. His body began to illume a radiant purple and black, mixing and combining from the dark matter bathing in his bones.

“You will release my friend, or I will make you,” Aseles threatened. She stood readily, “Sora is in there, and I will help him take over you.”

“Don’t you see!?” Vanitas growled, pointing his keyblade in her direction, “The Light cannot rid of the Dark! No matter how many times he tries, I will come back.”

“And I will be there to stop you!” Aseles shouted angrily, and the two charged to fend off each other’s keyblades. 

A swing sent Aseles’ feet skidding, but she pinned herself to the ground with a chain of vines to aid her footing. They wrapped around her ankles and calves, and lifted her up when Vanitas side-stepped to take a swing at her. He missed, but took the opportunity to slash at the plants. Aseles lost footing, but her wrist gripped onto a lunged extension from the ceiling. She landed on the floor, and charged to combat Vanitas ruthlessly, striking his keyblade in sharp, hot sparks. Vanitas kept his ground, but was tossed back when a green rope snagged at his waist. Aseles knocked him off his feet, and sent him rolling across the ground from her cheated blow. 

“Think you’re all that, huh?” Vanitas scoffed, staggering to his feet. He crunched his arms inward, but shot them out in powerful force; a dark orb began to surround his form, and the air began to darken in view. 

Aseles spun her keyblade in her hand, and a green cocoon morphed around her, blocking the dark orbs that were beginning to rain down from above her. She held her position, gritting her teeth as she felt the slammed spheres along the skin of her guard. Her body pulsed with each hit, but she did not have any means of backing down. However, the assault continued, and she began to feel the tears at the magical vines. She forced herself to wait, her eyes inspecting the now opened cracks to catch a glimpse of Vanitas. Then-

“Accept your defeat!” Vanitas shouted from the right side. Aseles stomped her foot on the ground, and with her keyblade pointed over her head, she was shot out of the shield like an arrow. She cut across the air, shattering her barrier and sending a clutter of fluttering wisps in the air. Vanitas swung his keyblade across in surprise, but Aseles alternated her grip, her right hand rushing her keyblade forward, the left gripping at Vanitas’ right grip from finishing his attack.

The tip of her keyblade met contact with the center of Vanitas’ chest, and the male froze with his eyes widening in surprise. Aseles sent a clutter of fragile, invisible vines inside Sora, illuminating the dark that was encompassing him. 

Vanitas’ orbs blinked slowly, and he scoffed roughly, “Cheap…shot.” Aseles dropped onto her knees, the intake of the vines retreating into her. The dark began to melt in the air rapidly as Vanitas staggered back, and fell harshly on the ground. Both keyblades vanished, and Aseles felt herself trembling, accidently withdrawing the darkness Sora once had. 

It was something….beyond her touch, made her feel inferior to it; it was something she could choke on, and devour herself into. It smelled of rich ash, and was ancient to her. It made her form retreat of her magical properties, and in the matter of moment she was revealed the true state her body was in; worn and thudding agony claws at the insides of her vessel skin. Her eyes flickered to stay awake, but she felt something tugging at her mind, and pulling her under. She felt the padding of muted footsteps, and the sky eyes that frantically called for her. 

“Aseles!” Sora’s face clarified to a muddy smear, and she felt herself being lifted from the ground. “Hang on, Aseles!” Her flashing conscience played clips of the ripped movie in front of her, where a scene of black constantly interrupted the sight of Sora’s frantic calling to Donald, Goofy and Zack rushing over in hurry.

But….Vanitas’ Darkness was far too great. It was indescribable, and prevailed to force Aseles down. 

Far too great.

 

_Don’t give in._

 

“Aseles, hold on!”

 

_Let me help you._

 

 

__  
She felt herself flickering in an abyss of light, teetered on a swing that was up too high from the ground. As if she were dangling from a giant hand that had lifted her to watch the small boy at the solid, white ground below. Her darkened orbs of contained skies shifted, and she felt a color shift in them, making her groan of the sharp pain at the back of her head. She felt her fingers tussle into her locks, but her attention averted to the small boy back below. The shadow of dark hair pulsed out at her at first, and a strong posture underneath it. The boy lifted his eyes, and they dilated with as storm bewitched into them. His hair swept to one side, with a few strands sticking out on the other side.  
The boy said nothing, but the longer Aseles looked at him, the further his face began to show…anguish….some form of deep sadness that it made Aseles’ stomach churn. A log of guilt drove down her stomach, and she didn’t know why. 

_She knew him. She knew who it was._

_Shadows that were meant to fade….._

_But it’s not true._

_He’s a memory you can’t lose._

_Let him hold onto you._

__


	7. Descendants

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ah man, been a while huh? Well, we're going into the nitty gritty of some new concerns, new characters, and definitely some new stakes. Thank you all for the support thus far, and I'm always happy to take a chapter out. Excuse any typos you might find, since I have to sleep for school tomorrow. How exciting. Education is awesome [but it's not when you have to get up at 6 in the morning, know what im sayin?]
> 
> I hope you enjoy this part, though I am not entirely sure if I'll be taking a second part before the month ends. I might, so I'm crossing my fingers! Have a great night, dudes!
> 
> Sincerely,  
> -Keys

_”There’s something about the Darkness. You can’t seem to live without it.”_

_Aseles felt the tip of her consciousness falter to roll over, but she gripped onto the floor, unknown of what material she was on. It was cold, but the atmosphere around her was intoxicatingly smothering. As if someone had put her inside an oven, and was slowly raising the temperature the further she was aware._

_“He’s inside you,” the deep, sneering tone furthered into her drums. “He’ll keep you safe.”_

_Aseles tried to move, but her fingertips and toes were nailed into the ground, and she seethed from any movement she attempted. She could feel the body hovering over her, the chest to her back and the blackened digits smoothing out to the crane of her neck and shoulder. She could feel him everywhere, and how utterly frightened she was of it. As if he had some type of control of her, even though she knew he didn’t. It was only a silver of his Darkness, but there was another presence she was not aware of until now._

_“I know you, Aseles. I’ve been watching you for a long time. Never depended on anyone to keep you safe, or to save you,” the voice of Vanitas continued to glide out. “Tricked and deceived so many times…isn’t it about time you do what you want?”_

 

“I used all the magic I could.”

 

_Aseles stiffened, feeling her eyelids beginning to jump to awaken. She tried to open her mouth, but it too was sealed shut with iron clamps and wire._

_“Sometimes, you have to do things your way, to get what you want…” his finger brushed back, and cupped the base of her neck as if he were coaxing her to sit on his lap. “You’re not looking for a home, or friends, or love. You’re far more evolved than that.”_

_Aseles’ eyes widened, and stared into the golden irises that were now hovering over her. They began to cloud and storm, however, colors of green and brown swirling into a twister. The colors of a hazel gale were now watching her…and she felt nostalgic about it._

_“You’re looking for answers, Aseles.”_

 

“She’s waking up.”

Aseles slowly lifted her eyes to open, and instantly felt the warm ground she was laid on. Her eyes squinted from the harsh rays of the sun, despite her placement in the shade. She didn’t bother to sit up, looking amongst the faces carefully inspecting her. Sora was sitting beside her, and help her up to sit on her bottom on the top step of the staircase leading to the Coliseum doors. Aseles hooked her legs around, her legs stretched out onto the lower steps and her face mushed and cradled in her opened palms.

“Jeezes…my head,” Aseles groaned, feeling the apparent poking at the back of her skull. Her back hunched, and her hands traveled to feel the section of her stomach where the Darkness had entered her. She exhaled, and shook her head.

“Aseles,” Goofy stated first, catching her attention with his hand on her free shoulder. “Feeling okay?”

“Uh….yeah,” she nodded, rubbing her cheeks, “Kinda sore.”

“Here,” Zack was standing in front alongside Donald. He pulled out a chocolate bar, and ripped off a piece to hand it to her, “It’ll make you feel better.” Aseles took it with a thanks, and began ate it all in two bites. She chewed silently, but then her eyes landed onto Sora.

“What happened?” she asked first, though she left the question open to Sora to answer.

He looked apprehensive, looking to the side before directing his gaze back to her, “Auron escaped. We don’t know where he ran off to, or who might be possessing him.” He dodged mentioning Vanitas. “The important thing is, is that you’re okay. Nothing hurts?”

“No,” Aseles exhaled, attempting to stand. Goofy and Sora aided her, and she took one last look before she confirmed her statement. “No, I’m okay, it looks like.” She picked up her hand to rub her temple, her ears replaying back the sound of Vanitas in her head. He didn’t appear to be lingering….but there was now something else Aseles felt. It seemed…attached, grown into her. It was….quiet and somber, and all she could recall was the color of hazel.

“That Auron guy put up a fight huh?” Zack rubbed his head, “It’s a good thing we got there when we did.”

“I think it’s those keyblade wielders,” Sora announced to Aseles, and by the look on everyone else’s faces, he already informed of what had happened inside with the swordsman. She doubted, however, that he mentioned something about Vanitas. His dodging eyes proved the exact fact...but she didn’t blame him.

“From what your gang has told me, they don’t seem to be a happy bunch of good-doers,” Zack crossed his arms, “Any reason why you think they would possess Auron? Or how?”

“We don’t know what they’re after, so we can’t confirm anything solid,” Sora sighed. “The best we can do right now is to stop whatever they plan to do next. And that is freeing Auron.”

“Maybe they have his puppet; the one Hades used to control him,” Donald advised.

“If they do, then they still must be in there,” Aseles added, rubbing her arm before finding her feet firm on ground.

“But what about you?” Sora quickly cut in, his eyes meeting Aseles’. She looked back to him, but she indicated with a nod she was fine. He contemplated an argument with the crease of his pulled eyebrows, but once he relaxed, she knew he had given up any form of retaliation.

The memory of Vanitas circled her mind, but she was unsure of his motives which furthered the growth of caution that had now seeded into her skin. The vagueness of his deviant actions were something Aseles had not planned, but she did not know if they were directed to Sora _only_. Terra’s words were more than enough to unravel her ease, but having fully experienced who Vanitas could be made things that much more complicated.

“We’ll talk about my well-being later,” she replied with a hint. Sora nodded, and she now turned to the other three, “For now we have to figure out a plan to head inside.”

“A trap sounds good,” Donald crossed his arms diligently, his eyes looking to the ground at the side before lifting to catch everyone in full, “But how will we trap him?”

“Hmm, we could head into the darkest room of the Underworld,” Goofy suggested, gaining some approved nods.

“Then let’s prepare ourselves before we take off,” Sora added, Aseles greatly considering his suggestion. Zack agreed to head to Thebes to restock the group. With the group’s shared munny in his hand, Zack gave a quick salute, and promised to arrive shortly. Once he was gone, that left Sora and his gang alone.

Drawing a map on the ground, the group was able to distinguish which paths to take until they agreed to head to the open area where Meg was once trapped into stone. The area seemed constricted on movement to trap Auron’s broad strikes, but spacious enough to let the team guide him into a corner if they proved successful. Soon enough, Zack came back, and the team replenished their energy.

“Let’s see if you have any more injuries,” Sora insisted, but Aseles was sharp to get the idea. The two separated from the group, a little off to the side where one gladiator statue stood. In the small shade it provided with the noon sun, Sora handed Aseles a potion, but she made slow attempts to open it.

“You feeling alright?” Aseles asked, but was met with immediate, clutching hands on her shoulders. She blinked, and she felt Sora hug her tightly to him before he quickly parted.

“I’m _so_ sorry, Aseles. I didn’t mean for that to happen,” he began.

Aseles stiffened a bit, but she shook her head, “I know that. But you need to tell me _why_ it happened.”

“I’m not sure,” he replied with a heavy sigh, “one second I’m with you, and the next I’m not. It was like being behind a hard, glass wall, and I couldn’t do anything to help you.” His shoulders dropped, and it physically hurt Aseles to see him like that.

She cringed, but shook the shiver off and reached to grab onto his arm, “Why are you afraid of, Sora?”

“I’m afraid of hurting my friends, afraid of...hurting you,” Sora quirked his mouth into a frown, crossing his arms tersely that his elbows almost pointed like blades, “No one will trust me if I say anything.”

Aseles exhaled from the relation of that; gaining people’s trust while harboring a dark secret was never something she was good at doing. Not to mention, it was almost impossible to keep some straight face when the worst of it happened; she could see why Sora would be timid of the idea of sharing this with anyone, but she was glad he was comfortable enough to talk to her about it. He was a leader, a noble guy who only wanted to save the worlds, but to have something inside of you wanting to do the exact opposite was something Sora was unprepared to do.

“We’ll think of something,” Aseles nodded gently, “Be careful when we go down there. Then we’ll figure it out.”

Sora looked to her, but smiled lightly, “Thanks, Aseles.”

With the plan set, the five reentered the Underworld, only this time with better guard and weapons readily in hand. As they walked to the set of doors where Sora and Aseles had arrived from before, she could sense the tension fixated along Sora’s arms. She could see his fingers drumming on the handle of his keyblade, having reverted back to its normal self of color. The flash of that stretched grin made Aseles’ skin dance unpleasantly, but she rolled her shoulders to shrug it off.

“To better our chances of luring Auron, I think the three of us should trail behind a little back behind the two of you,” Zack informed with a thumb to him, Donald and Goofy. “Do you think we can do that?”

“If Aseles is comfortable,” Sora regarded.

She agreed, “Yeah, that sounds fine.”

Continuing the way while leading, Aseles was glad there was no sign of any consequence of the plan happening...yet. The fog felt thicker, and the air smelled of copper and ash mashed and rolled together in a pit of a fire. It stung the back of her throat a bit. It must be a figment of her imagination.

Behind she was able to hear the three set of feet following, her nerves blocking her sense of feeling. Her higher sense was caught in a haze that she couldn’t shake off, and she was unsure why. Ugh, it must’ve been some of that Darkness that seeped into her.

“You doing alright?” Sora asked softly, his keyblade locked in his grasp, almost an extra bone to his body.

“I should be asking you that,” Aseles whispered back.

His mouth sloped to a firm line, “Right.” She didn’t mean to sound edgy or cocky of the remark, and she was worried that’s how Sora was going to take this approach. Having dealt with something of his like before, the last thing Aseles wanted was for Sora to feel that his emotions were inferior to hers.

“We’ll be alright,” Aseles reassured, and that gained a simple nod from him. She didn’t want to take any chances of Sora being dishonest to her.

Coming to the end of the cave soon enough, Aseles’ eyes caught sight of the tall torches set around. Circling around the area, they were extinguished and almost left the room in pitch black.

“Let’s shed some light,” Sora called, and Aseles heard his footsteps move away from her, his whisper hardly inaudible. Aseles tried to adjust her eyes to the darkness, but instead held out her keyblade and ignited the tip with a small flame. She hoisted the weapon vertically up, and lit the first torch. It took a bit to catch fire, but once Aseles was successful, she looked over to see some portion of the room was now searchable, but not enough to fully expand. She could see Sora on the far side, and was moving to the next one. With a steady pace, Aseles went to the next torch until she reached the last one in the row. She lifted her keyblade, but it suddenly met something...metal.

Aseles’ eyes widened, but an inch was all she could take before the clanging of metal sent her flying. The lit torches around Aseles fell to the ground, and her part of the room was extinguished. She swiftly got up.

“Aseles!” Sora shouted, and the other set of footsteps approached from behind. Donald’s wand shot out a crackle of lightning, but Auron deflected it, and sent the entire wave of it against the rest of the torches to make them spark out of light. The room was pitch black once more.

“He’s in here! Don’t let him escape!” Sora commanded.

“We need light, Donald!” Goofy replied, and the sound of clanging was heard, following by a loud grunt. A quick flame sprouted upwards, and there revealed to be Zack and Auron clashing swords. Zack swung across to disarm Auron, but the swordsman was too quick and caught his sword midair, and slammed his body against the force of his swing. It sent Zack’s feet skidding across, and the fire spell died again.

“He’s running for you!” Zack warned, and Aseles heard another forceful strike, creating sharp sparks. Sora seemed to hold himself well, but Aseles was not taking any chances and raced to Sora’s aid.

“Sora!” Aseles shouted, and she felt Sora’s side almost slam into her before he made both of them duck down. Auron’s blade swung across, missing to behead them. With both keyblade pointed upwards, Sora and Aseles knocked Auron backwards. There was silence, except for the clatter of some metal. Aseles turned behind her to see Goofy and Donald had lit two torches, and Goofy stood them up properly. It gave some light in the room, and helped provide some aid on seeing Auron struggling to get to his feet. He held his blade like a staff in front of him.

“Come on, Auron, snap out of it!” Sora shouted. The dark-eyed man lifted his gaze, and it was there Aseles saw the shift of soft, hazy lavender alternate between his normal eye color, but back to possession.

“You’re-“ Auron hissed, and he fell to his knees. His blade fell, and his hand tangled itself into his jet, black hair. He groaned of the great agony that held him, and he flinched repeatedly whenever the lavender vapor in his eyes succumbed him to bow and obey.

“Auron!” Sora rushed over, and he gripped the back of Auron’s coat, trying to keep him kneeling. Aseles and the others followed, Donald lighting up his wand with a strong flare to light their surroundings properly.

“Stay with us, Auron!” Goofy encouraged.

“I...can’t,” Auron swallowed, “The puppet. He has the puppet.”

“Let me try something,” Aseles suggested, and she walked around to kneel behind Auron. Her hands laid flat onto his back, Sora quickly nodding of her attempt.

“What is she doing?” Zack asked.

“She’s going to try to cut the control off with some Light magic,” Sora answered. On cue, Aseles’ eyes began to illuminate softly, and her fingertips began to radiate and pulse bright waves along Auron’s back. She could feel this massive energy radiating from Auron’s core, something foreign yet similar to her touch. It seemed to delve into Auron’s body, rather than his mind.

“Who has the puppet, Auron?” Donald asked. Auron struggled to answer properly, his throat bubbling with groans and grunts instead. Suddenly, the sound of landing feet filled the room, and everyone darted ahead to see a silhouette revealing through the shadows of the cavern wall. Lower face covered in black cloth, lavender eyes pierced through the obscurity of the scene, with a brown jacket hanging loosely around their back and sides. Boots rested with loose laces beneath a pair of long, gray and slacked shorts. Aseles eyes widened as she looked past Auron to the figure’s hand that held a dark, bronzed and jagged keyblade.

“Tell us who you are!” Zack shouted. Sora stood next to him, while Goofy and Donald tended to both sides of Aseles.

“You’re messing with my puppet,” the mysterious male responded. Their violet hair gleaned in the flame’s light as they approached, bangs moved to the left side.

“We will bring back our friend, no matter what it takes,” Sora retorted angrily, his keyblade flashing out into view.

“I think I can cut the connection,” Aseles whispered to Donald and Goofy.

“Let’s get him out of here,” Donald whispered hastily, and signaled Goofy and her to haul Auron to his feet. However, everyone froze with the opposing keyblade lifted to their direction.

“I will not let you foil my plans,” the figure planted his feet on the ground. “Stand aside.”

“No way!” Sora shouted, keyblade set out with Zack and Donald on either side of him protectively. “You want Auron, you’ll have to go through us!”

“Suite yourself.” The person suddenly charged, and Sora flashed forward to clash against the foe. The flashes of combat ensued, but the male moved with rhythm, and was able to slam Sora backwards, making him roll across the ground. Zack charged next while Donald stood defensively behind Auron, Aseles and Goofy beginning to make their way toward the exit of the cave. Her hand continued to press against Auron’s back, unleashing whatever Light energy she could gather to give to him without her passing out.

“Donald!” Sora shouted the moment Zack was tossed to the ground, his blade against his chest as the figure slammed onto it to flatten him further. With a leap the foe rushed, and Donald let a spell of Thunder ignite the room. With ease, the figure glided along the floor with precision, and tripped Donald face first onto the ground, the keyblade jammed onto his legs. Aseles’ eyes widened, Goofy having let go to fend off the oncoming weapon. Auron’s body slumped to the side, and Aseles fell with him, her pulses of Light halted. She swiftly darted around, seeing Goofy continuously deflecting the attacks. The figure skidded sideways, and launched Goofy with a kick, making him roll backwards and hit the rock wall. Aseles’ eyes widened, but narrowed viciously once he began to approach.

She swung her keyblade into view now, and did not hesitate to bravely slam and strike with accuracy. The male was more agile than Aseles had anticipated, and she too met the same fate of the ground. She looked up to see the keyblade hover above her, and took initiative to attack her against the ground. Aseles hissed in pain, her keyblade flying out of her palm. Before the enemy could strike down, he was suddenly kicked back. He growled in pain, and standing in front of Aseles was now the standing Auron.

“Change of plans,” Auron directed his blade upwards, and cut brutishly across. The male shouted in a pained cry, and staggered back to grip onto his chest. On the floor was a fallen object, and when Aseles took a closer look, it was a stuffed, replica plushy of Auron. The figure reached out to retrieve it, but that’s when Sora and Zack cut in, and send the rival flying to the far edge of the cave.

“You might as well give up,” Donald warned as the entire group now surrounded the male. He chuckled, however, making Aseles grit her teeth.

“Knew you would show up,” the male suddenly remarked, and when his eyes looked over to Aseles, she felt the most uncomfortable tremor run along her lungs. “All according to plan.” He suddenly leapt upwards, the soles of his feet touching the outer edge of the barrier that housed the large, dark abyss behind it. Without another word, he let himself drop, and everyone stood stunned.

“Jeezes,” Sora exhaled, hurrying over as he too also jumped to haul himself to the edge of the rock fence. His eyes squinted to look down, but from what Aseles was seeing, the opponent was gone.

“He was not an ordinary fighter,” Zack placed his blade onto his back, rubbing the side of his neck, “It didn’t even seem like he needed that keyblade.”

“He didn’t.” The group turned to see Auron looking to the floor, his cool expression unaltered of the head of the keyblade he had cut off moments prior. Aseles narrowed her eyes to the gleaming material, but dared not to pick it up. Auron lifted the object in his hand, and stood before the group.

“It’s good to have you back, Auron,” Sora sighed in relief, standing before him. Auron nodded in agreement, his eyes traveling among the group.

“This belongs to you,” Goofy smiled as he walked over, and handed the puppet back to its rightful owner.

Auron scoffed lightly, and took it gently from Goofy’s grasp, “Appreciate it.”

“How are you feeling?” Sora asked next.

“Better,” Auron briefly replied.

“What happened? How did that guy control you?” Aseles added next, seeing Auron close his eyes, but open them the next few seconds with a contemplated answer.

“Let’s take this outside,” Auron replied, “I think I’ve seen enough of this place.”

AT THE COLISEUM:

Astonishingly, Auron stepped out of the Underworld without a fuss, and finally handled over the torn piece of material to Sora after inspecting it himself. He didn’t say much about it, except to have someone of expertise examine it to see the type of bondage it carried. He made out a good point however: if it could be made, it could also be broken.

“Auron, how long have you been in that guy’s control?” Sora asked.

Auron took a moment, but replied coolly, “For some time now. But, I believe you shouldn’t have rescued me.” The group exchanged conflicted glances.

“Why do you say that?” Goofy asked next.

“I believe the purpose was for you to set me free,” Auron added. Aseles narrowed her eyes, crossing her arms and looking to the ground in question. The whole purpose to control Auron was for them to come back to free him? But what purpose would that serve?

“You think he wanted to see them for himself?” Zack asked, and thumbed to Sora and his gang. The four looked to him, and then looked to the nodding Auron.

“Precisely. However, I should thank you,” Auron paused, “but all I think of saying is how weak your aim was fighting against the intruder.”

“Yeah, you’re welcome,” Sora rolled his eyes, quirking a smirk after. “We’re your friends. Part of the plan or not, we were going to save you either way.” Auron scoffed at that.

“Say, why don’t you participate in the games with us?” Zack mentioned, walking over with fists on his hips, and standing beside Auron.

“I should say, the foe did mention about the games to me,” the swordsman hummed in thought, rubbing his chin with his free hand.

“Did he say anything to hint on what he might do? He’s not planning to interrupt the games is he?” Sora arched a brow.

“He only mentioned it’s approaching date, but that was all,” Auron answered.

“You think he’s going to join?” Donald crossed his arms while tapping his foot impatiently.

“Maybe, which is why we _should_ come back. Who knows where he is now,” Sora suggested with an opened palm, “What do you guys think?”  
Goofy and Aseles nodded, “Makes sense.”

“That way, we can also visit you guys again,” Sora beamed. Zack smiled while Auron waved a hand dismissively.

“If you see it fitting,” Auron added.

“You bet!” Zack flared energetically, “Then arrive in good time, you don’t want to miss it. For all you know, Auron might give me some pointers.” Zack’s hand patted Auron’s shoulder.

The older man merely stared ahead, “It wouldn’t make much of a difference, I’m sure.”

“…..OH,” everyone looked to Zack who stared at the grinning Auron.

“Well, I think we should get going, and take this to Leon and the others,” Sora padded his pocket with the broken shard of keyblade.

“Then I’ll make sure this guy gets signed up then,” Zack motioned his head to Auron.

“Take care guys,” Goofy waved as the gang began to walk backwards, bidding Zack and Auron farewell as Zack gave a frantic wave with Auron merely looking at them before turning to walk inside the building. Zack followed after.

Ahead the gummi ship rested after the keyblade’s calling, and the four rounded themselves inside the cockpit to strap themselves in, and drive the gummi ship back to Radiant Garden.

 

FFW

SORA’S POV:

He sat in the pilot seat, staring at the cosmos and stars floating by. His hands were tight and stiff on the circular wheel of the ship, where his fingers drummed against the rubber grip. His blue eyes darted around the controls, and along the scanners to make sure everything was according to their travel back to Radiant Garden. He sat a bit more comfortably back against the chair, and he released the wheel once he set the engine on auto-pilot.

He stood and stretched fully, sighing as he released his muscles. He looked over at his companions that slept quietly, aside from Goofy’s little dribbles of snoring here and there.

Swallowing hard, he turned with a gripping hand at the back of his neck, his mind startled of the events that took place in the Underworld. He stared at the metal wall at his left, and cringed at what the darkness inside him turned into. Vanitas was his name.

Sora remembered his struggle for the control of his body, sensitive of the stinging pain in his chest, as if someone was drilling through his sternum to get to the inner core of his body. His loss seemed like a blur, and he didn’t reminisce how he had done so. Was he caught off-guard?

Vanitas was a tormentor to him, but what worried him further was that he was going to be a threat to everyone that was with him. Who was going to trust him if they found out he was carrying some Darkness within himself? How long had it been in there, hiding and cast aside until the perfect conditions were met to awaken this dark slumber?

“I will protect my friends.” He headed back to his seat, and took the ship off of auto-pilot, "My friends are my power." However, he froze when the small murmur of a voice leaked out from his ears, quite so sure he heard these words:

_“We’ll see about that.”_

 

TRAVERSE TOWN  
??? POV:

With the strength that was left within her, she fluttered her eyes open, and felt the ached of her body take complete control of her. Her body shivered in the cold, and she didn’t know where she was. All she could remember was blackness, and then a bright light that had served her as her escape from her death sentence.

Slowly, she sat up, laying her back against the brick wall, and felt the dampness of the area. She could hear water dripping as its sweet sound echoed across to boom in her ears. At the far end her blurred vision made out the picture of a crescent moon with the walls sparkling, making it seem like small stars were surrounding the majestic moon.

“My…” the girl stood up on struggling feet, her wet back pressed against the cold wall behind her. The tears in her eyes curved around her faces as they joined the chiming of the water drips in the hidden cave. She felt terribly alone, and the horrific thought hit her: she had nowhere to go in this new place. It was all new to her; she was no longer anywhere near her home.

She looked around the dim cave, seeing no light helped her view, except for a small glimpse to her right. There, her eyes brightened at the look of a staircase, leading up…somewhere. On all fours, she began to make her way gently to it, and stood until she reached the first step of the stone staircase. She hauled herself up to her feet, and began to walk steadily up the steps. Up ahead, she saw what appeared to be a floating platform, waiting as if it were expecting her.

The vibes of it seemed to invite her in, and she did not hesitate to sit down on, and pulling her legs up upon it. Suddenly, it came to life and lifted her toward the gap in the ceiling above her. She stared at it in awe, waiting what lay ahead of her.

 

RIKU’S POV:

It was reassuring to know that Destiny Islands hadn’t been invaded whatsoever, and the idea of having their parents worry further about their travels was enough to make his silver hair turn white at the age of twenty-five. Not that it would make a difference anyways.

He was glad he was able to level things a bit, and he was sure enough back in Radiant Garden with Kairi and Axel. It was odd having the former-member, redhead beside him, but Riku had come to grips that Axel was more of a chatterbox than he was, and was able to occupy his and Kairi’s time while coming back to town. Kairi seemed a little hesitant with him (taking into the account of her kidnapping), but opened up gladly at the idea of being friends. Now united with the Hollow Bastion Committee, Kairi seemed preoccupied on aiding Aerith and Yuffie, and Axel went back to his heavy duties of keeping supervision along the town with Leon and Cloud. It wouldn’t be long until Sora and his group arrived; it had been a week since their departure.

Lying on his bed, Riku closed his eyes after having settled what he needed to look for in Ansem’s Study. His eyes flickered slowly to face the ceiling, and he picked up a sense of tranquility. He could still hear the ocean’s waves crash into his ears, and it honestly felt like he was there....like those times so many years ago.

His eyebrows furrowed to make the arches of his skin concave, and his mind continued to sleep and drift through the cobwebs of his memories. A little boy he was, at the shore of the beach with the sunset turning the sky a fiery purple bloom. The water gleamed of bright white and pink, and in front of him was the tall, brunette man. He held something large in his hands, of striking bronze metal and a teal handle of hold such great dominance.

“In your hand, take this key...So long as you have the makings, then through this simple act of taking....” Riku stretched out his hand, a heavy sigh evaporating into the air above him, “Its wielder you shall one day be.” He let his hand drop, and gripped his bangs. After a couple of moments, he opened his eyes again, and opened his mouth with a small hint of regret, “Terra…”

 

OLYMPUS COLISEUM  
??? POV:

The sun seemed pleased by the clouds around, harvesting the sunlight as if cradling it like a child. There stood the tall teen, his arms crossed with his back against the shaded wall. He looked past the fire that was set on the golden torch in front of him, and observed past it to see two men exit the stone doors.

“I think his name was Ben? Ken??” the younger male of the two seemed to be contemplating, but the older was simply looking ahead, listening to his partner’s conversation.

“You have a terrible memory,” the old swordsman replied simply, making the younger dart his eyes to him. They both continued off toward the city, unnoticing the teen’s presence. He smirked and straightened up boldly, his hands dug into his front pockets. His eyes scanned the area calmly, and he took his time heading over to his destined area, entering upon the doors the two men had left earlier. Inside, he felt the cool air, and looked over at the pedestal that stood at the far end of the room. He walked toward it, and looked at the entry box, with the paper and pencil just set beside him.

“So, they’re here,” the teen reminded himself, taking the pencil to rotate it in his fingers. He hummed and began to neatly scribble down his name, folded it in half with tight precision, and let the note drop into the slot of the entry box.

“Hey there.” The teen turned, and saw a gladiator-like man standing before him. Dressed in the iconic tunic of brown and deep gold, it was no doubt Hercules, the son of the Olympus Gods.

“Hey,” the boy replied.

“Going to enter the games?” Hercules held his own hips, and smiled genuinely to the idea of having more competition.

“Sounds like fun, why not?” the male smirked. “I hear there’s going to be a lot of competition.”

“Of course. Then I can’t wait to face you in a match,” the hero replied. He walked past the teen, and walked into the stadium after hearing someone call out his name to hurry up.

“Yeah, can’t wait. Isn’t that right, Aseles?” the young male turned toward the opposite direction, his smirk dropping to a firm line. “Can’t wait.”

 

ASELES’ POV:

 

_A whisper, a sound that trotted through ears,_

_Captivating the heart, and ending the tears...._

_Something, someone waits at the end,_

_The aura speaks enemy…but really reads friend._

_Down and down she began to descend. A rose window the size of a stadium awaited at the bottom, the pattern of a glistened, glossed lily flower resting its petals out like extended fingers. She landed gracefully onto it, as if she didn’t weigh a thing until the heavy gravity of the dark walls pushed her onto her belly. She groaned, but kneeled, and looked about the place. It was far more spacious than she realized, breathing and pulsing like an organ, and she were the heart of it all._

_“Don’t remember me.”_

_Aseles whirled her head around, exhaling sharply for the sudden coldness that plunged from the ceiling. She could feel her breath circle around her neck, attempting to keep her warm._

_“I forbid you too.”_

_She gripped her throat, and she fell onto the ground, like splat of tossed meat on a conveyer belt. She could feel the blades approaching, ready to tear and rip her apart._

_“Terra?” Aseles voiced out, but when it did, it boomed and shot across the air. The edges of the lily’s petals cracked, and Aseles hurriedly staggered to the center. She breathed shakily, her arms flailing to keep her up as the floor faltered and rocked like a rough wave of the sea._

_“Just give in.”_

_The floor stopped withering at the base of her feet, and she stared at the dark abyss below that began to morph into a vortex, sucking in whatever last, lit glass there was set around her. She felt her hair whip along her face, but she already gave the answer to the question with a shake of her head._

_“Of course you won’t. When did you ever?”_

 

Aseles rubbed her eyes roughly, yawning from the abrupt awakening she had moments prior. Once the gummi ship had landed successfully through the numerous days of travel, she could feel the crane of her neck from laying her head against the armrest of her chair. They should definitely bring pillows next time.

“Everyone set? We might go head to Merlin’s first,” Donald announced while leading the way up to the Town Square. The shops were bustling with some commotion, but the group was greeted with the familiar faces of the shopkeepers of the Armory.

“I supposed we should buy some food before we pass out from drinking plain potions,” Sora joked, reaching into his pocket for munny.

“That’s probably a good idea,” Aseles agreed, taking out her share and giving Sora a cut of her stash. Donald and Goofy pitched in as well, and the group began to head to the nearest grocery store on sight.

“Aseles!” The group paused before entering through the wooden door of the shop. Down and running up the paved walk was Stan, Aseles blinking of his sudden call out to her. It seemed like a greeting...with a hint of urgency.

“Hey, Stan,” Aseles blinked, extending her hand out to hover over his shoulder. The boy leaned his hands on his bent knees, trying to regain his breath from the run.

“It’s really good to see you, and your friends,” Stan replied, giving a hasty wave to the trio behind Aseles. They waved back.

“Nice to see you again. How’s your mom?” Sora tilted his head lightly. Stan’s smile dropped instantly, and Aseles shivered from the action.

“What is it?” Aseles rested her hand onto his head now.

“She got sick, but I don’t know why.”

“Huh? Sick?” Aseles’ eyes widened, “How long has she been sick?”

“It’s been a couple of days,” Stan breathed evenly. “I was hoping you could help her. She asked for you.”

Aseles rubbed her head, but nodded slightly, “I’ll take a look, but I don’t know what good it will do. Um, I’ll meet you guys later?”

“Yeah,” Sora nodded.

“We’ll be at Merlin’s,” Donald advised.

“Okay, lead the way,” Aseles turned to Stan, and the two began to walk down the pathway of the Castle Town. She looked at the back of Stan’s head as they progressed further through the town, Aseles dragging her fingers down her face and back up to rub whatever anxiety she might be showing. If it wasn’t one ordeal that was happening, it was always another.

At last the duo came upon Stan’s house, and the boy was eager to invite her in. The house seemed more steadier and replenished than the last time she was here, bearing in mind it was right after the raid of the town.

“She’s upstairs,” Stan replied while Aseles closed the door behind her. Quietly, she followed him up the stairs, breathing in the faint fragrance of the house. It smelled of faint, burnt vanilla, Aseles assuming it was the residue of a recently, burnt out candle. Reaching the top step, he turned to the right, heading down the small hallway and coming upon a door. There, he turned the knob, and revealed the dimmed room inside. The bed was pushed near the far left, squeezing the dresser’s side between the headrest of the bed and wall. A small lamp tranquilly lit the room, and at the right side of held a door for a closet and another for a bathroom. In the bed rested Jaqueline, sleeping heavily with her chest distinctively rising and falling to indicate her breathing.

As Aseles walked in with Stan’s permission, she saw her face was paler than usual, and her eyes flickering a bit too rapidly in her slumber. It was like she was trying to catch every movement of her dreams in desperation to continue sleeping.

“Mom, Aseles is here,” Stan walked forward, and laid his hand on her shoulder. He shook her once, but she didn’t wake up.

“She must be tired,” Aseles replied, patting his back to leave her be. “I’ll do what I can while she naps.”

“Okay,” Stan nodded, “Oh, did you want some juice? I forgot you got back.”

“Yeah, that would be nice,” Aseles smiled gently. Stan walked out of the room, leaving Aseles to stand beside his mother, and place her hand on the older woman’s forehead. She was burning up, making Aseles pout of the state of her fever. Nevertheless the brunette placed her hand fully on Jaqueline’s head, and her eyes began to glitter a small shine of silver. Aseles felt the exhaustion of the travel creeping up her legs, but she tried her best to shake it off to at least help Stan’s mother.

“Not...forgotten...” Stan’s mother murmured, making Aseles look to her intently. She was talking in her sleep? Aseles could only imagine what she _was_ actually dreaming about. As she took a closer look, it did look like she was sleeping...but not enough that she was semi-awake.

Aseles began to radiate pulses of Light magic out, in hopes of healing whatever organs were being affected of her sickness. The color of her cheeks began to somewhat return, but Aseles closed her eyes to give a better dose of her magic...until-

“Ansem...” Aseles froze, and she felt her fingertips lift slightly.

“W-What?”

“Don’t do it....Don’t...make her forget-“ Jaqueline instantly fell quiet the next second, making Aseles tense in her posture. She continued to deliver whatever Light magic she could muster to relinquish, but once she drew her hand back, she felt nothing but an ice blanket around her shoulders.

What....what the hell?

“Here, Aseles.” Aseles jumped form the sudden talk of Stan behind her, and she shot her head around to see he had pulled up a chair from the side of the room for her. However, his hand holding the glass of juice lowered, having noticed her expression. “Is something wrong?”

“Uh....n-no, no,” Aseles shook her head, but instead of running out of the room, she took the chair and the glass in hand. Stan hesitantly walked over, and looking between his mother and her.

“Is she okay?” Stan’s voice grew anxious.

“Oh, she’s going to be fine. Her fever should hopefully go down tonight,” Aseles replied quickly, noticing her agitated and tensed state was making Stan nervous. She relaxed her shoulders, and took a sip of the glass, “I guess I’m a little tired from our trip back.”  
That much was true, and she could only anticipate the meeting that would commence once she got back to Merlin’s Study.

“Oh, I see. Is everything okay?” Stan asked, taking a seat at the end of the bed, his eyes looking to Jacqueline briefly before resting on Aseles.

“It’s complicated,” Aseles confessed, rubbing her forehead gently. “I’m not sure what to make of it, except tell you that there are people making fake keyblades now.”

“What? They can do that?” Stan asked.

Aseles nodded, “We’re not sure what they’re after yet.”

“I hope you find out soon, that sounds awful,” Stan quirked his mouth, “Leon doesn’t really like to tell me things like you do.”

“Leon came over?”

“Yeah, he wanted to check on my mom to see if she’s been getting better. He doesn’t know what’s wrong with her either,” Stan sighed, “I tried medicine, but it still didn’t help.”

“You haven’t been on your own, have you?” Aseles raised a brow.

“Oh, no. Leon and Aerith always check up on me,” Stan smiled.

“Oh, that’s good,” Aseles smiled, fond of Aerith’s good-nature talent of being a mom. Not that...Aseles knew what it felt like having a mom. Oh jeez, that took a dark turn. She cleared her throat, “But you’ve been good? It always looks like you grow two inches every time I see you. You reach my shoulders now.”

Stan chuckled, “What, afraid I’ll pass you?”

“Sure, sure,” Aseles rolled her eyes, sipping the last of her drink before setting the glass on the floor beside the bed. “But yeah, I’m not sure how long I’ll be here, but I’ll come by tomorrow to check on her again to see how she’s doing. I’ll give Leon some leeway.”

“That would be great,” Stan nodded, resting his hands on his knees.

“Do you have food to eat at least? Don’t want you starving,” Aseles replied, taking a stand and setting the chair near the small table where it first was.

“No yeah, I do,” he nodded as he copied her stance. The two exited the room, Aseles unable to shake off the doubtful cloud resting among her inner ponders. It began to rain and flood her considerations, but by the time she got to the bottom step, she was drowning in the pool of confusion. She had no idea what Jacqueline was referring to...but the name Ansem was all she needed to know that it was going to be something Aseles had to figure out....again. Would she even remember if Aseles asked her afterwards?

“Take care Stan, have a good night,” Aseles waved to his motioning hand, and once he closed and locked the door, Aseles began to take off and make her way to the central of Castle Town. Sunset was hitting the horizon in the distance, the colors of orange and purple mildly mixing to create a soft haze of light among the world. Several people already seemed to be inside their homes while others were still conversing. The place definitely looked improved from the last time she and the others were here; she definitely had to thank Leon for helping the restoration.

“Hey,” Aseles shouted out, looking to see a silver-haired male heading out of one of the armory shops in town. It was Riku, and he looked around with a raised brow, but relaxed his pose when he saw who it was.

“Aseles,” Riku greeted, and the two stood side by side as casual greeting, “Thought you would be with Sora and the others.”

“I was, but I had to take care of something,” Aseles replied, “They headed to Merlin’s Study, so I’m headed over.”

“I’ll walk with you,” Riku replied, “I finished some business as well.”

“What, working?” Aseles asked, leaning a bit to his side from curiosity.

“Yeah, and getting something done for Leon,” Riku replied, holding a synthesized gem in his hand.

“Oh, I see. How is Destiny Islands?” Aseles hurriedly asked. “Hopefully...Axel wasn’t too much trouble.”

“Amazingly, no,” Riku chuckled, making Aseles smile, “but it’s fine. Luckily nothing and no one has gone to harass it. Checked in with the folks and came back once we figured nothing was hiding.”

“That’s a relief,” Aseles nodded.

“How was the trip?” Riku began as they walked into the Market Place. Aseles had to squint her eyes a bit, and face away from the direction of the horizon. She instead looked at Riku, serving her eyes better.

“A lot...happened,” Aseles scratched her head. “But, I think the others will cover it once we get to Merlin’s Study.”

“Why say it like that?” Riku noticed her tinge of edge, and Aseles just knew she was a horrible liar no matter what the topic was.

“I can’t say,” Aseles lifted her arms out, but let them drop down to her sides again. She slowed her pace a bit with Riku’s, her hands shoved in her pockets to relieve some of her hesitation. She couldn’t really say what was happening to Sora, and the whole idea of fake keyblades was enough to baffle anyone really. Then, the thoughts with Terra.....

“What’s on your mind?” Riku stopped, the two standing on the top step of the staircase, leading to the dozens of houses and apartments at the lowest ground.

Aseles exhaled, “It’s about Ansem.”

Riku kept his ground, “What about him?”

Aseles opened her mouth, but in all honesty, what else could she say about him that she hasn’t already said. She hasn’t openly talked about him with anyone, except Sora that day on the beach when Leon came to pick them up. But even then, it wasn’t enough to terminate all these negative feelings she was having. Knowing he died...knowing he wasn’t here to be with her...

“I don’t know,” Aseles managed to answer, gritting her teeth slightly. The edges of her eyes filled, and she somewhat jumped when she felt Riku’s arm around her shoulders, “I just....”

“Hey...” Riku frowned lightly, patting her upper arm, “Say what’s on your mind.”

“I-I don’t know, I mean...” she sniffed, “Maybe I could’ve changed something. Maybe save him- I don’t know. He just always...pops out of nowhere. Even after he’s gone. I didn’t want him to be. I didn’t want him to leave me.” She reached to wipe her eyes off, unable to shake the tremors surging in her lungs.

Riku held her gently, his chest inhaling before he opened his mouth, “You want to know something?”

Aseles sniffed again before looking to him, “What?”

His mouth opened, and his words reeked of the finest sincerity it ran like silk, “He never left. He’s right here.” Riku touched the center of his chest, and Aseles couldn’t help but cry and smile from the gesture.

“Yeah, I suppose so,” Aseles sighed, rubbing her cheeks off. “It just feels...people keep things from me. Is that odd?”

Riku’s smile dropped, and he slowly shook his head, “No, I don’t think it’s odd at all.”

“I keep thinking that-maybe I’m overthinking.” Aseles waved her hand, “Never mind. But...thanks, Riku.”

He let go of her, and nodded with a reassured glance, “Any time. Let’s catch up with the others.” With that, Riku led the way down the steps, with Aseles following beside. Her eyes lifted in mood, and she gazed to the roofs of the houses, her eyes finally eye-level to the doors and windows on the bottom ground.

However, she didn’t notice the straight, stern stare Riku was giving her, and the worried assumptions leaking in his beliefs that maybe...Aseles was finally catching on to things she shouldn’t be...


	8. Party Crashers

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Yes, success, two chapters out in one month and boiiii do I feel more accomplished than I have with my writing thus far. In terms of actually doing something with it.   
> ANYWAYS.
> 
> Thanks a ton for the support, I can't thank you enough. Already 200 views on this, I am truly grateful! Hope you enjoy this long chapter. Excuse any typos you find, and have yourself a great day/night! Next month is Korra month so see you in the next fanfic!!
> 
> Sincerely,  
> Keys~

Arriving in Merlin’s Study, Aseles greeted Leon and the others amiably, and took a seat next to Goofy with Riku on her right side. The front row consisted of Yuffie, Aerith and Kairi, the middle Sora, Donald, Goofy, Aseles and Riku, and the behind was Axel slumped in one of the chairs with Cloud leaning against the brick wall with Tifa standing nearby him. Merlin was absent, but that did not dissuade Leon from speaking in the front. 

Leon and the others were informed of what had occurred in the group’s visits to the other worlds, most in question the keyblade piece that had been recovered from the Underworld. Leon was examining it with Cloud when Aseles had arrived, but he placed the shard at the side in a glass container, promising to extract its contents later. Defense precautions were being settled, and Aseles volunteered with Axel, Cloud and Riku to monitor the exterior of the town for any intruders in the night shifts tomorrow. With meeting adjourned, Aseles was confronted with Leon while some of the others began to gather in different sections of the Study.

“Hey,” Leon reached, and ruffled the top of Aseles’ hair. 

She grinned slightly, pushing his friendly arm off and looking up past her tussled bangs, “Hey, Leon. How’s everything?”

“Going well,” Leon smiled gently, crossing his arms, “Nice to know you’re holding up. Anything new to report?” Aseles caught his drift, and took a moment to reevaluate her answer. Leon was by no means a simpleton, so it was not surprising for Leon to read her easily. By far, he was one of the only people who fully knew well enough to ask her about subjects she wasn’t comfortable talking with other people. Though, it didn’t mean she was willing to share _everything_.

“Um, right now no,” Aseles shook her head, most of it relating to Sora’s inner-wacko, darkness double. “Except Stan’s mother. I went to visit her when we got here,” she reminded herself.

“That’s right,” Leon sighed in agreement, “I plan to see her tonight. How did she look?”

“Looked like she had a fever,” Aseles frowned lightly in response, “but I gave her somewhat of a boost to get her back on her feet, hopefully.”

“Oh,” Leon hummed in approval, “I’ll double check. If it makes you feel better, I’ll head over while Yuffie and Aerith take you to the new house we constructed.”

“New house?” Aseles raised a brow.

“New place for the growing kids,” Yuffie grinned as she came up right behind, and patted Aseles roughly on the back. 

The brunette winced briefly, and gave her a stare, “Right, says the short ninja.” 

Yuffie scoffed, but gripped her shoulder, “Always have a comeback, don’t you?” Aseles shrugged, Yuffie paying mind to it before looking to Leon, “We’ll take the piece Sora brought to the USS, and wait for you there.”

“Alright,” Leon agreed, “Then meeting adjourned. On second thought, Axel will take you to the spot you’ll be guarding tomorrow night, so we get preparations over with by the time your shift starts.” On cue, Axel stepped from behind, and let his hand heavily dropped on top of Aseles’ head. She mumbled, but looked up to see Axel was leaning his head over, and staring at Aseles upside-down. 

“We can start heading now,” Axel smirked with amused, sharp eyes.

“Right, uh huh, sure,” Aseles muttered, the two bidding Leon and Yuffie a bye before heading to the emerald door of the Study. Giving Sora and the others quick wave, Aseles followed Axel outside, and hurried to walk beside him properly.

“You’re looking good,” Axel joked, making Aseles roll her eyes. 

“You too, Axel. Always looking good,” she replied back, making Axel grin and agree fully of her remark.

“Anything new? It’s been around two weeks,” Axel pushed his hands in his pockets, his lean fingers stretching in his pockets before relaxing and settling with his walk. “But it looks to me a lot has indeed happened on your travels.”

“Pretty much nailed it,” she answered, giving a look ahead as they walked up the stairs to head to the Bailey. “The fake wielders have been giving us enough problems.”

“What, is there something else?” Axel rested his hands on his hips, leaning slightly. 

Aseles sweatdropped, but shook her head, “No, nothing else really.”

“Hmmm…..fine, hopefully it doesn’t bite you in the ass later,” Axel replied as he began to head down the stairs from the Bailey. Vanitas’ grin mounted in her vision, and she shuddered and shook her head to block it away.

Aseles mumbled to herself with hunched shoulders, “Hope it doesn’t.” The duo reached the bottom of the steps, and Axel proceeded their venture toward the shard, infested trail leading to the Ravine. Aseles skidded her feet smoothly down the slope of dirt, and the two reached the bottom where the broken columns of where a stone platform once stood. Aseles paused in her stride, and gazed around the manufactured floor. From the looks of it, the Restoration Committee seemed to take it upon their hands to fix the entire marble base, with green vines rising along the rocks walls encasing the space. Axel stopped and turned to see Aseles inspecting the place.

“Wait…” Aseles raised a brow, and she looked to a stone monument that was embedded into the rock wall on the far left. She paced over with Axel watching her carefully, not making any motions to gain her attention. Aseles kneeled before the marked engraved, and her eyes caught sight of a musical note. She blinked, but her eyes opened in realization of what it meant. She stood up, looking to see Axel. When he reached her side, he shrugged in response.

“Demyx was just like anyone else,” Axel replied, his hands pushed into his pockets again. “So why not have a funeral just like everyone else?”

“Right…” Aseles nodded, her hand rubbing her cheek. “I’m…sorry about what happened to him.” The wrenching feeling of seeing him die was the pinnacle moment of the disaster her keyblade could bring to someone. She could only hope she would find some closure after, but those days seemed so long ago compared to the fresh memories she just got...Truthfully, she had forgotten of the sitar player.

“He wasn’t a fighter, that was for sure but…he was a team player,” Axel looked over to Aseles, catching her eyes, “But I don’t blame you for defending yourself. You did what you had to do.”

Aseles took a moment to swallow before replying back, with a hint a remorse, “What….happens after being a Nobody?”

Axel scowled slightly, and he shook his head, “I’m not sure, honestly. I just assumed you become…nothing.” Aseles stayed silent, and Axel began to walk away from the grave marking. Aseles followed shortly after. 

Rounding the corner of the trail, Aseles and Axel stood at an opened area between the entrance and exit. Axel gestured his arm out, circling the spot once meanwhile Aseles followed him with her eyes.

“This will be your guarding shift tomorrow. Nothing comes in,” Axel shot his glance to her. 

She instinctively nodded, “I gotcha. What about something wanting to get out?”

“In that case, it’s a question whether or not you should let it go,” Axel riddled. He waved a hand to the side, “But I’m sure you know what you’ll do.” Aseles crossed her arms and she began to inspect the area closely. Her feet walked her around the bend of the curved walls, though her eyes paused to gaze into the largest shard in view. She tilted her head in question, and leaned into the reflection of the surface. 

_“Where are we going?”_

_“You’ll see.”_

_“You know I hate surprises.”_

_“Aw…you do?”_

_“Well…no. But you won’t tell me where we’re going.”_

A rushed and silenced pair of voices cut across her drums, and Aseles rubbed her forehead, groaning slightly from the experience. What the heck was that?

“So!” Aseles jumped, looking behind to see Axel was right beside her, looking into the reflection to catch Aseles’ gaze, “What do you think of Sora?”

“Um, what?” Aseles raised a brow, able to rub away the last static in her ear. 

“Well, yeah,” Axel motioned with a hand, “What do you think of him?”

“I’m not sure…what you’re talking about?” Aseles stared with furrowed eyebrows. 

“Oh, come on, you’re sixteen, seventeen, right?” Axel insisted. 

Aseles blushed, and snapped her arms across her chest, “No, I’m eighteen, actually. And I don’t know exactly where you’re going with this.”

“What, I was a teenager too, a long time ago,” Axel scoffed, smirking slyly while leaning against the rock wall. Aseles rolled her eyes again, looking away and toward the other exit of the trail. She could feel all the shards turning bright shades of red, and began to instantly warm the area without her consent. 

“He’s a good guy, but I don’t think- why are we even talking about this?” Aseles flailed an arm around, unable to suppress the blush smeared on her face.

Axel quirked his mouth, and reached forward to ruffle the front of her hair, “Just because you have to save the worlds doesn’t mean you have to grow up so quickly.” Aseles relaxed her posture, and looked up to Axel as he retreated his hand. The words began to slowly drain into her cranium, and she sighed from the truth of Axel’s words. 

“Well, it’s different for us, I think,” Aseles commented. Axel waited for a response, and she sighed with her fingers drumming the side of her thighs, flattening them, “I don’t think of romance in the wake of danger.”

“Doesn’t mean you can’t feel it,” Axel replied coolly, resting on a vertical shard nearby. “Doesn’t kill to have a normal conversation about normal things.”

“Yeah, I guess you’re right,” Aseles exhaled gently. “But, since we are, no, I don’t like Sora that way I suppose. It came to mind at one point yeah, but it never developed.”

Axel hummed, drumming his fingers on his arm, “That’s interesting. But given your circumstances, I can see why.” He looked to the side, “Xemnas was too sure on having you sway his way. He thought if he could get to you, he could get to Sora too. Guess it was more complicated than it looked like.”

“Yeah, besides,” Aseles rubbed the tip of her boot against the ground, creating a curb of lifted soil, “I’m pretty sure he has a thing for Kairi…or Riku.”

Axel laughed, running his fingers through his hair, “Is that so?”

“Well yeah, am I the only one that sees it?” Aseles opened her arms out.

“How sure are you about Sora and Riku?” Axel continued to chuckle.

“Jeezes, Axel! He literally cried on his knees when he saw Riku. Kairi was more of a shock,” Aseles added, making Axel laugh that much more. “Don’t be so mean. Sora seems like the kind of person who would like anyone, as long as he’s happy with them.”

“Yeah, you have a point,” Axel finished off his rant of laughter, making Aseles that much redder, “He’s a good kid. He can pick whoever he wants to be with.” Axel walked forward, and he bumped his shoulder against hers, “So, what if he picked you?”

Aseles took a moment, exhaling sharply of the sudden questions Axel kept throwing to her. To be with Sora was not something she didn’t think about, but at the same time never occurred that it would actually ever happen. He was a great person with a contagious personality, but the idea of having that follow her around was too difficult to level with. She had her moments of wanting to be left alone while Sora enjoyed company. He was perky and cheery, while at times she looked like she had just come from visiting a funeral of sorts. They were vastly different, yet both determined and helpful to those who needed it. However….

“I don’t think we would want the same thing from each other,” Aseles admitted, gaining a quiet stare from Axel.

“Hmm, what do you think that is?” Axel replied. Aseles took a breath, and looked back to the large shard embedded into the wall, casting her and Axel’s reflection. She slanted her lips at her sight, and then redirected her dull orbs to Axel properly. 

“Sora has everything he needs,” she began, “but I don’t. I like being here, with you, and Leon, and everyone in Radiant Garden, and I like helping the worlds with my friends. But….that’s not what I’m looking for.”

“What is it that you’re looking for?” She hesitated. Axel reached, and brushed her shoulder, “You can tell me.”

Aseles shut her eyes, “I’m looking for myself.” She wasn’t complete; she felt it immensely often and occasionally. The return of her memories in that book in Destiny Islands, in the way things occurred with Ansem in his last moments, whenever Terra visited her in her dreams. “I’m missing something,” Aseles continued shakily, “and I want to find _it_.” She expected Axel to question or retort with an answer, but when he didn’t, she opened her eyes to see a recognizable look on his face. His eyes softened, tranquil waves after the storm. 

He nodded lightly, and held onto her shoulder in confidence, “Then find it, Aseles. It’s waiting for you.”

THE NEXT DAY:

RIKU’S POV:

Desolately, he didn’t dream of anything. He wanted to, but it seemed like he wouldn’t be rewarded with such a wish. 

In dreams, he could forget, and imagine himself somewhere, some place where nothing interrupted his train of thought. However, in the middle of imaginings, he knew he was in a problem; it would either be too perfect, or too improbable for his taste, and the fact something was waiting to ruin it was all too great to continue dreaming. Dreams, such weird things. Much less he would want to dream in routine. 

The morning chill had awoken him, and his busy, calculated mind caused unsteadiness within him. So he lay in bed, looking at the ceiling dolefully and covering his face with his arms. He shook his head slightly.

“She knows I’m lying,” Riku reminded himself with a heavy sigh. Was it possible Aseles would figure things out, or was there time left to keep Ansem’s wish? The old man, why did he have to die?

He pushed the covers off of himself, laying in the coldness of the morning. It was best to get ready, and up he stood, only wearing a pair of shorts and socks. He headed to the bathroom, taking a quick shower and getting himself dressed in his usual attire. Again, he was back outside in his room, sitting on the bed as he rubbed his face.

It didn’t seem right to keep secrets from Aseles, and it did cause him disdain to have to see her face secretly offended. He would see her delve into her own, inner judgements, even if she had to disconnect from the rest of the worlds. She always did it often in Destiny Islands, and the act of it multiplied after the group recollected their memories from the secret book they received. 

Every coming day, she would wake up with a new, rewound emotion of loss and regret, and it wasn’t until later in the day that he found out why she was so withdrawn and decapitated to talk to him, Kairi or Sora. Slowly the memories collected, and when they finally stopped pouring into their heads of what had occurred, the real questions emerged to the point of Aseles sitting at the beach, and just waiting for the answers that would never arrive there.

Who collected the memories?

How did they arrive?

Why now?

Aseles had no parent to take fond of her, and no guardian to watch her. It was quite upsetting, and there was nothing that could be done, but move on as she always had to do. It was something that couldn’t be helped or stopped, but how Riku was bound to his conscience to at least say something to her without breaking his promise to the wiser, passed man. He tried to find loopholes, methods, tactics, the courage to hint her that everything should stay as it is, and she would get her answers later. His only assumption was that someone else was meddling with Aseles’ memory affair. Someone must be doing it.

Riku stood and left his bed as he had gotten out of it, heading to the door and opening it. He found himself in the hallway, but amazingly he wasn’t alone, seeing Sora head out of his room as well.

“Rise and shine, lazy bum,” Riku smirked.

“Thanks, you too,” Sora rolled his eyes, rubbing his face to wake himself properly. Kairi must still be asleep, as well as Donald and Goofy considering the silence downstairs. He wondered if Aseles was still asleep. 

He left downstairs, shaking his head from his intruding ponders. He headed inside the empty kitchen and yawned, seeing the door open and inside walked in Leon and Cid. Sora showed up behind the silver-haired teen a second later.

“Hey,” Riku greeted, heading to the refrigerator with Sora constantly yawning and stretching his arms. His brown strands looked like bundled straw in front of his face.

“Hey,” Cid waved with Leon nodding.

“Gummi ship preparations will be dealt with later. Right now we need help to extract the contents of the keyblade shard Sora gave us yesterday.”

“Want me to take a look at it?” Riku looked back, pouring himself some water. “Sounds like you didn’t have any luck last night.”

“That would be appreciated,” Leon replied, “I’ll wait for you outside.”

“As for you, boy, wake up already. We have a gummi ship to prepare for you tomorrow,” Cid approached Sora, and sent a rough slap against his back.

“OW!” Sora hunched his head, rubbing the spot rapidly with a quick swipe, “Did you have to hit me so hard?”

“It’s probably the only way to wake you up,” Riku commented casually, sipping his drink with Sora staring at him.

“Ha ha ha, funny,” Sora grumbled in distaste, making Riku and Cid grin. 

“You’ll be joining us later in the day in the garage,” Cid reminded Riku who nodded.

“I’ll be there.” With that, Cid began to walk outside with Sora, and Riku grabbed a nearby fruit to the trip over to the USS. However, he paused in his step, doing a takeback up the stairs before following Leon outside. He hoped Aseles did not have that distant stare today. 

ASELES’ POV:

_She sat on a wooden bench, the sky painted dark with spots of shine and glamour to indicate the virus of stars. Like a million lanterns, they seemed. In the distance were darkened mountains, but she could not see beyond their blurred edges. She heard footsteps approaching from behind._

_“You’re late this time,” Aseles replied. Terra took a seat beside her, his elbows resting on his knees. She looked over to see him staring ahead, and she followed suite of his manner. Silence drew, and Aseles figured he wasn’t going to say anything until she did. As usual._

_“I don’t know what to do…” she shook her head. “Everything seems confusing. I’m not sure what to think.”_

_“Vanitas?” Terra questioned._

_Aseles sighed, “That’s his problem to deal with. I haven’t told anyone.”_

_“You should,” Terra insisted._

_“I heard…a pair of voices in my head, in the Crystal Fissure trail,” Aseles began._

_Terra rested his hands on his knees, and looked over to Aseles fully, “What did you hear?”_

_“I can’t remember…it was so quick,” Aseles replied, exasperated of Terra’s silent demeanor. “It was….a boy, and someone else. I think it was me.”_

_“What makes you so sure?”_

_“I don’t know! Why else would I be having conversations about people I don’t know?!” Aseles whispered angrily, gripping her forehead. Again, Terra said nothing, and Aseles was growing tired of where and how quickly this conversation veered. She breathed gently, “I just want to know…”_

_“Yes?” Terra replied._

_“I want to know what this all means,” Aseles signaled the area they were in with extended arms. “What this means.” She motioned between the two of them._

_“It’s something you’ll have to keep looking for,” Terra replied, making Aseles displeased of his answer. Suddenly, “But you’re closer than you think.” Her eyes shot up to stare at him, but when she did….Terra was gone._

 

She fluttered her eyes open, and shot them widely out to look at the ceiling. She blinked from the morning sun intruding through the window, and sound of running footsteps echoing in the alleyway beneath it. She sat up with the warm sheets rolling off her shoulders, and leaned forward to rub her hands on her face roughly. 

“Jeezes, Terra,” she whispered to herself, but did not let the dream discourage her from getting ready for today. She had to visit Leon, and see what report he had about Stan’s mother. She had completely forgotten about it last night, and didn’t see him when Axel brought her to the new home her and the others were sharing. A home stocked with five bedrooms, with four bedrooms at the top and another two at the bottom, it was missing the living room, but the other commodities were enough to satisfy her. As long as she had a bed and bathroom, she was good to go.

Tossing her pajamas onto the bed, she slipped onto her clean attire, and slipped on her tight tunic underneath and finished with her dress on top. She checked for supplies, but came to the conclusion she had to restock. Slipping on her socks and boots, she wondered if they had supplies in the USS. They must have. 

Aseles walked out of the room after making the bed, and closed the door behind her. She looked to see the other doors were opened, indicating everyone was up. They must be doing their chores for the day as well. 

Walking herself to the kitchen downstairs, Aseles got herself a bowl and a box of cereal, drowning half of it with milk from the frig. She sat once with spoon in hand, and began to eat noiselessly to herself while rewinding the images that played before she had woken up. Terra’s in definable message only rose further questions of how he could even know of her progress of reinstating her life back from its scattered pieces. He knew her in some way, but how was still and might forever be a mystery. Despite her frustration of trying to figure things out, was she that much closer to finding something out?

After finishing breakfast, Aseles washed her dishes and set her sights to the door leading outside. Once out, she closed the door securely, positive no one was to raid the house and steal her dirty clothes, or anyone else’s. Walking to the center of the pathway, Aseles caught sight of a figure striding around the corner, revealing to be Cloud. 

“Hey,” Aseles waved, catching Cloud’s attention. He did nothing, but did not avoid to approach her to stand beside her. 

“Morning,” he greeted, “Where are you headed?”

“To the USS, to see if Leon can tell me something about Stan’s mom,” Aseles revealed. 

“I’ll accompany you.” Her and Cloud strode side by side to head to the stairs leading to the Bailey.

“How are you? Doing good?” she asked.

“More or less,” Cloud replied with a subtle shrug. “But I should be asking you that question.”

“Um, I’m alright, not bad,” Aseles replied with confidence, “Want to know if everything is fine here in Radiant Garden. Ever since the last attack, been a little wary on security in the worlds.”

“Understandable,” Cloud replied firmly, “Leon and the Committee have taken extra precautions on upgrading the system, but seem to be having some trouble having the town’s program to accept the new data created.”

“In the Grid?” Aseles quirked her mouth, “Hopefully there’s no bad news with Tron.” They walked up to the top step, and headed toward the open entrance of the Bailey.

“There might be,” Cloud replied, “You never know for sure.” The duo made their way to the bottom of the staircase and through the hallway of the underground center of their town’s guarded system. Once to the door leading to the center chamber, it whizzed open to reveal a set of bodies standing around a platform with a spherical glass dome. The persons consisted of Leon, Riku, Tifa, and Axel. 

“Join the party,” Tifa looked over with a smug yet exhausted look. Cloud approached first while Aseles took a quick look around the center. The screen displayed a calculated set of numbers, with the time displayed in military time fashion. Also a presentation was playing of different set of materials that Aseles had never really heard about. 

Once situated, Aseles walked over and stood in between Leon and Riku who gave her a greeted glance before looking back inside the glass dome they were peering into. Aseles followed, and saw Leon was using a pair of large, sharp tweezers through the glove compartment. At the center of the show was the shard the group had collect, gripped in metal clamps to hold it in place. It appeared bursts of hot light had been extracted from the material already from the look of burnt gaps smudged along the interior, white walls. 

“You have to pull the material out quickly,” Axel insisted.

“If I do that, another piece will break off and leave us with nothing,” Leon argued plaintively. 

“You’ve already tried to cut it apart slowly, and that hasn’t worked the last four times has it?” the redhead crossed his arms, looking impatiently to the shard Leon was now beginning to slowly unravel from the edge. Aseles watched carefully, seeing a piece began to break off, but a surge of electricity was binding the smaller with the bigger portion. When Aseles thought it was finally going to give up without a fight, a flare of darkened light exploded inside the chamber, and Leon quickly let go of the tweezers, letting them clank out of his grasp. The group backed up except for Tifa and Cloud, and once everyone recollected to look inside, another burnt splatter rested where the tip of the tweezers relaxed. The larger portion of the shard was left intact. 

“Get some rest,” Leon nodded his head up, signaling to Tifa and Axel, “You’ve been up long enough.” Tifa sighed in defeat, and began to walk herself away from the group to the exit. Axel followed suite, giving a brief wave to Aseles before too disappearing out of sight. 

“Jeezes, how long have you been at it?” Aseles grimaced while Leon rested a hand on the side of his neck.

“Long enough to conclude this hasn’t been made by materia we know,” Leon breathed, “Don’t want to destroy it either, since it’s the only sample we have.”

“The chemical binding it together is unstable without the contents,” Riku rubbed his chin.

“Then it’s best to leave it alone for now,” Cloud confirmed with a look to Leon. “More research might be needed before we try again.”

“Right, agreed,” Leon complied. Cloud and Riku settled their path toward the computer, with Riku giving Aseles a glance before parting. Aseles approached Leon’s side, his eyes preoccupied to the shard resting in the glass compartment. 

“Sorry about that,” Aseles replied softly, indicating to the shard with a small wave of her palm, “Didn’t know it would give you that much trouble.”

“It’s not your fault. Did you need something?” Leon asked, giving a small smile to her.

“Well,” she nodded, “I wanted to know if you did check up on Stan’s mom, and see how she was.”

Leon’s eyes widened a bit in realization, and he cupped his arm with the others, “Yes, she’s doing quite well. Much better than the previous week. I gave her some medicine just in case, but whatever you boosted her with helped a lot. Maybe you can go see her, and give me an update. I have the horrible feeling I might be in here all day today.”

“Uh, sure of course,” Aseles smiled gently with a nod. “I’ll go see her right now. Oh, do you have any potions or ethers in here?”

“Unfortunately no, we sent Kairi and Yuffie to restock them, so you might run into them in the Market Place,” Leon replied. 

“Already got it!” The two turned toward the entrance, seeing Yuffie carrying a crate box, with Kairi carrying some bottles securely in her arms. Aseles hurried over to aid Yuffie with the crate, and the ninja sighed in relief. 

“Just lead me,” Aseles replied, and the trio made their way to the end wall of the room. Once setting the crate down, Yuffie rested her hands on her hips, and did a triumphant nod.

“Thanks, greatly appreciated,” she grinned, “Take as much as you need. We got plenty.” Kairi kneeled to set the potions and ethers in her arms into the crate as well, her hands motioning to pushing down her dress properly in place.

“Hi, Aseles,” she greeted with tight hug, making Aseles cough once before patting her back gently in return. 

“Hey, how’s your morning going?” Aseles asked as she began to kneel and restock her pockets with the potions and few ethers she needed.

“Pretty good, thanks! I didn’t want to wake you up this morning, but I didn’t know you were coming down here to help,” she replied, smiling nervously.

“Oh no, it’s fine. I just came down here to ask Leon something, but I’m headed out right now to check on someone.”

“Oh, so you’re going the way of the Market Place? I’ll go with you,” Kairi pointed out, “Aerith needed something me at a shop anyways.”

“Oh alright. Um, did you need anything Leon?” Aseles turned, seeing Yuffie lean against Leon’s back, stretching arms up before resting her hands behind her head. Leon stared deadpanned to the dome in question, but shook his head to Aseles. 

“No, Yuffie brought everything, thank you.” 

“Then let’s go!” Kairi hooked her arm around Aseles, and the brunette felt herself being dragged to the exit of the USS. Aseles managed to steady herself, and walked alongside Kairi in normal pace. Kairi loosened her grip, but smiled nonetheless to Aseles. 

“Did you just get here?” Kairi asked. 

Aseles cleared her throat, “Yeah. I saw Leon and the others trying to de-synthesize the keyblade shard we got.” Kairi hummed in response, and the two were finally outside of the dark hallway and cascaded into the morning sunlight. 

“I hope we figure out what’s going on soon. Kind of sad to know we were fine, until Leon and the others showed up.” Kairi sighed as Aseles took the lead this time, and she looked beside to see Kairi rub her arms with her delicate hands.

“Yeah, I’m with you on that,” Aseles sighed, shaking her head, “As Sora would put it, ‘Everything is going to be fine as long as we stick together’.” 

“Hehe, he’s probably right,” Kairi smiled genuinely, despite Aseles’ poor attempt of mocking his optimistic tone. “But I wanted to ask you something,” she continued.

“Yeah, what is it?” Aseles blinked as they reached the bottom steps leading to the trail of houses. 

“Do you think...Sora would mind if I came along?” Kairi dragged her words out carefully, and Aseles felt the automatic press of an iron at the back of her neck. She reached to rub the sensation off, but when she looked over to see Kairi’s eyes drop from their cheery disposition, Aseles knew she would probably end up putting Kairi in a bad mood for the rest of the day.

“I’m....not sure, honestly,” Aseles added, already feeling the rushed lecture Sora would give her if she automatically said yes. “He’s the leader of our group, so I can’t say, Kairi. I’m sorry.” In addition, Sora’s compulsive behavior of keeping Kairi safe would drive her crazy. The boy drowns everyone with his protective-older-brother mode that even Aseles herself wanted to kick him between the knees. Kairi just seemed like the match to the flame for that to happen. 

She sighed in response, “He won’t let me go then. He won’t think I will be able to handle myself.” She shrugged, “It was worth a shot asking you.”

Aseles felt the iron shackles of guilt pulling down her arms, and she tried to think quickly to answer, “We care about your safety Kairi, that’s all. I mean, especially Sora, and Riku.” She added in the end to cushion the blow. 

“Everyone cares about your safety, and yet _you_ still go,” Kairi added, now pushing Aseles into a corner despite the open area they were walking though. 

“To be honest, Kairi, I have different motives for going _other_ saving the worlds,” Aseles responded back. “I won’t find my answers here, if I stay here.” Kairi darted her eyes over, and the two finally stopped at the bottom step leading to the Market Place above. Aseles waited for Kairi to say something, but even the redhead was having trouble replying now.

“I’m always here, and I really can’t go anywhere unless Riku or Sora approve it. Like I’m their little sister or something,” the redheaded teen began, “I guess they see you something more than a sister.”

“It’s not that, Kairi, I swear,” Aseles tried again, “I’m no higher than anyone else here. You can ask Sora if you can go, but take into account that you were already kidnapped twice.” She tried _very_ hard to not spit that out like venom, but either way it made Kairi stare at her defiantly, which Aseles knew would happen in whatever tone she brought. She knew the moment one of them brought it up to Sora, it would end the same way.

After a few moments, Kairi nodded slightly, “I guess there are two sides to it.”

“If something else were to happen to you, Kairi, I honestly think Sora would never forgive himself,” Aseles added, and she felt a small twist in her gut when she saw Kairi’s face light up the moment she said that. As if that’s what she wanted to hear in the entire argument. Aseles was by no means in any competition to win Sora’s affections, but now she wondered if Kairi was. Looking back to the whole conversation now, Kairi seemed withdrawn to fully express her concerns...and Aseles wasn’t sure why until now. “Yeah, I guess you’re right,” Kairi finished, making Aseles sigh in both relief, and disbelief. 

“I’m not always right, but okay,” Aseles quickly responded, and she began to head the way to the Market Place. After some of the awkward silence, Aseles looked back to Kairi, “What store are you headed?”

“That one,” Kairi pointed to the fabric store near the weaponry, “I believe Aerith is inside.”

“Alright, then I hope you finish whatever you need to finish,” Aseles replied. Kairi nodded, and the two gave a small farewell to one another. Kairi hurried away, and Aseles pretty much did the same and made her way through the crowds of people. The discomfort of their discussion left the back of Aseles’ throat dry, but once she remembered where she was going, the approach to Stan’s house calmed her nerves greatly. She had no idea where Kairi’s feelings came from, but she could only hope she would get them straightened out. They were already dealing with enough problems, and Aseles didn’t want another to worry about. 

Walking through the center of the Castle Town, Aseles stretched her arms out at her sides and in front, letting them drop to roll her shoulders. She smiled at the fact of several children running along the open square of the area, as if there really wasn’t any troubles ensuing. She progressed through the path leading to the residences, and found herself making way to Stan’s door, and knocked. She waited a bit, inspecting the area before knocking louder this time. She heard the soft pads of footsteps reach the bottom step of the stairs, and she quickly backed up slightly. Looking at the door, Aseles held her breath when the doorknob turned. It slowly opened, and standing somewhat in restored color was Jaqueline. Her body was wrapped in her robes, her eyes holding softened, dark circles. She smiled gently at Aseles’ presence.

“You shouldn’t even be standing,” Aseles advised, expecting Stan to open it. 

“It’s good to see you too, Aseles,” she inhaled a small laugh, and moved a bit to the side, “Come inside.” 

Aseles did as she was told, looking over to Stan’s mother, “Are you alright? We should lay you down.”

“Would you like some water?” Jaqueline insisted. Aseles shook her head, but the woman was unrelenting on walking into the kitchen. The young brunette followed after, standing idly by and watching Jaqueline reach for a glass.

“Tap water is fine,” Aseles replied before Jaqueline made way for the fridge. The older woman filled her cup, closed the faucet, and sluggishly walked over to Aseles. Aseles quickly headed to the table, and opened a chair for Jaqueline to sit in. The older woman thanked her and sat, and handed Aseles her cup. She took it graciously, and took the seat beside her. She drank briefly to satisfy Jaqueline’s efforts, but set the cup aside. 

She looked over to the woman, “Are you alright? Leon said he visited you last night.”

“That he did,” she smiled in response, “He was persistent on checking my health, but I told him I was fine now.”

“Are you?” Aseles raised a brow. 

“I am moving more freely than I was before,” Jaqueline pointed out. “Stan told me you dropped by as well.”

“He seemed worried about you,” Aseles mentioned with a small frown, “Is he here?”

“No no, I sent him off to play with friends. He deserved to be let go after his hard work,” Jaqueline folded her hands on her lap, her eyes still glued intently to Aseles. “But thank you for aiding me.”

“What were you sick from?” Aseles asked, refusing to let the curiosity take command to mention Ansem. 

“I’m not quite sure,” the woman spoke. “It must’ve been something awful; I felt I was awake in my sleep. Some sort of coma.” Aseles nodded in understanding as Jaqueline explained her symptoms, but they were not any she was familiar with to lead to a common flu or cold.

“Do you remember anything from it? While you were sick?” Aseles asked, and she waited with baited breath when she saw the elder inhale, look to the side, and catch Aseles.

“No, I don’t,” she replied, driving Aseles’ hopes of asking about Ansem way past the gutters underneath the pavement. Of course she didn’t. It seemed like this man wiped away everyone’s memory whoever he came across.

“But it’s a good thing you feel better then. I should let you rest. I need to help prepare some things for my team,” Aseles stood to push her chair in. Jaqueline watched her as Aseles walked over, patting the back of her shoulder gently, “Did you need anything from the Market Place?”

“....Sit down, Aseles,” Jaqueline suddenly averred. Aseles’ eyes widened by a fraction, but Jaqueline did not break the connection of their dark eyes to one another. Aseles slowly backed up, and rested her bottom onto the chair again. She waited with arms on the table, her head slightly leaned forward in question with her legs jointed together beneath the table.

“I don’t know who it was,” Jaqueline replied with a sigh, rubbing her face off gently while Aseles narrowed her eyes to her. She moved a set of dark bangs away from her face before catching Aseles’ eyes again, “But whoever I met on my way back home, all I remember was seeing some figure, a cold sensation run through me, and I found myself sick in my bed.” 

“Someone made you sick?” Aseles narrowed her eyes further, and she reached to grip onto Jaqueline’s hand, “Here, in Radiant Garden?”

“I wouldn’t want to worry the Hollow Bastion Committee, but I believe it’s smart for Leon to know,” Jaqueline shuffled in her seat a bit before squeezing Aseles’ digits, “Whoever it was that made me ill had nothing of good intentions for the coming of this world.”

“I’ll ask Leon if he can come and see you when I see him,” Aseles promised with a determined nod. 

“Thank you, Aseles, truly,” the woman smiled softly, “Then I shall hold you back no longer. Get on with what you need to finish. I’ll tell Stan you said hi.” 

Aseles smiled back, and she agreed, “Alright, take care, Jaqueline. I’ll see you soon.”

AT NIGHT:

After spending most of the afternoon helping Donald, Goofy and Sora box up supplies for the gummi ship, Aseles helped with repairs on the engine, but mostly watched when Cid and Donald had to get down the nitty gritty. Thankfully, she didn’t run into Kairi once they were done, and she wasted no time in taking her shift early at the USS. Once advising Leon of the new information he would recollect from the awakened Jaqueline, Aseles set the new gear she acquired from him and Axel. It was a watch with an attached beacon on the side to contact for emergencies, which Aseles applauded for. Someone like her definitely needed it.

Once departing from the night crew which consisted of Tifa, Axel, Cloud, Riku (substituting for Leon), and Aseles, everyone set their watches and parted ways for their destined locations. 

Aseles slid her feet along the slope leading to the Ravine, and made her way across the marble floor. She paused halfway on the platform, and looked to the gravestone Axel had made for his sitar-loving friend. She took a quick look around in the dimmed light of the night, and hurried over with slow, respectful steps to the engraved wall. She placed a hand over the middle of her chest, feeling the vital organ passionately drumming against her cage.

“Sorry, Demyx,” Aseles whispered out and bowed her head in respect. 

Treading through the Crystal Fissure, she was surprised to see them shed light for the passage and found her location easily. She flashed out her keyblade into view, and torched the end with a heavy, well-lit fire. With the amount of ethers in her pockets, she was sure to not go without fire in the rest of the night. 

The moon moved by a large fraction now, and Aseles had begun to practice some swinging moves, taking a break every twenty minutes before starting again. She checked her watch to read it say one. With four more hours to go, Aseles began to practice and manipulate her magic adroitly, and consumed her ethers wisely to not be left out in the dark. It was different, being alone in the heart of nightfall. She felt more guarded and suspicious than naturally confident as she tried to be. Something about the dark made her uneasily biased to dislike it. Ironically, she knew she had some, and she wasn’t sure where it had come from....

Once it rang three fifty-seven, Aseles halted her magical attempts, and instead extended her arm out. Her fingers bloomed like an frightened flower, and she concentrated in an attempt to spark out...some Darkness she might have. However, nothing was emerging. She shook her arm once, but sighed in the stupidity she was struggling to create. If she had some, why wasn’t it coming out?

“It doesn’t work that way.” Aseles struck her keyblade around, her body in full force of attack when she stared at the cloaked figure across. Her teeth gritted, and she held her keyblade tightly in hand. The figure made no motions to advance, but the firelight made it near impossible to keep her head leveled to see the figure in the dead of night. 

“I don’t know who you are, but you need to stay away from me, and my friends!” Aseles warned, and she charged forward. The figure stayed put, but Aseles did not hesitate to ram a fire wall against him. However, the blaze parted, merely burning and flaming at the rock wall behind him and leaving him unscathed. Next she skid to swing her weapon across, but the male simply directed the keyblade off with a lift of his arms in precise motions. The weapon clanged of its deflects and left Aseles’ arms to shake of the impact. She swiftly backed up, staring in utter skepticism of her keyblade refusing to land a hit on the figure. 

“What happened to your friend was not my doing,” the figure responded. Aseles growled, infuriated on the fact he already knew what had happened before she did. The figure stayed in place, but moved a bit to the side, his face underneath the shadow directed to the largest shard near the end curve of the area.

“You can’t walk around, thinking you know everything like you’re some mighty god,” Aseles retorted angrily back. 

“To be a god, you must have a heart,” the male replied. Aseles blinked, and she faltered to lower her keyblade. Once it did though, she looked to the watch on her wrist, and the button of the beacon that would warn everyone over to her distress call. She reached to it, but halted halfway to it.

“I can show you something that might help you remember.” Aseles shot her eyes up, and took a slight step back to see the figure was standing only a yard away from her. He was a bit taller than she was, but not enough to make him lower his face to her level. He rested his arms behind his back, his chin the only lit body part from the moon’s bright shade. It was a light tan, with his bottom lip parting open.

“Do not force the recollection of your memories, or a grave consequence will ensue,” he replied.

“How do you know who I am?” Aseles exhaled, gripping her keyblade tightly.

“If we’re lucky, it won’t matter in the end,” he replied. His arm lifted, his hand casted over with the large sleeve at the end. Aseles looked over in the direction of the crystal he indicated. Aseles turned to look at him, but she jumped at his sudden disappearance. Where did he go?

Given up on him reappearing again, Aseles swallowed, feeling the rattle of her ribs. She approached carefully to stand next to it. She rested a hand against the cold surface. She was unsure but....

Aseles injected the head of her keyblade’s head between the edge of the crystal and the rock wall. With a forceful push, the keyblade entered, and she began to pull the handle back, grunting with skidding feet. The crystal began to leisurely make way until finally Aseles was able to make the large object give enough room for passage. Aseles exhaled, rubbing the sweat from her forehead with a quick swipe of her arm. She approached the slit, and her eyes scanned inside the dark entry of pure rock. Aseles swallowed, feeling this sharp chill run up her back and down her fingers. 

He pointed in here...for a reason.

With whatever courage Aseles had, she gripped her keyblade tightly in her hands, and lengthened her intake and outtake of breaths as evenly as she could. The passage seemed to take longer than she had expected, and she was afraid something in front or behind was going to trap her inside. However, once she saw the dimmed moonlight, she quickly advanced toward it. With caution, Aseles reached the end....and was awed by the large area she was led to.

Parched, heavy platforms of fountains were collected in front, with two at the sides and one in the very, dead-center of the space. Aseles was standing on a worn-out bridge, with the stone walls around intact and filled with hordes of green vines. It looked like no one had been here for ages.

Flashes of light blue, lavender and pink, and the smell of fresh water began to swirl and twist inside Aseles’ mind. She felt a snake coil around her legs and torso, and felt the air beginning to decrease the more she stared. When she knew she had to breath, Aseles gasped out, and she gripped her stomach, her eyes rapidly shifting back and forth until she was leaning against the rock wall, running her hand hurriedly down her face to grip onto the front of her dress.

 

How could she had forgotten the Fountain Courts that had been here when she was a child?

 

FFW:

_“Where is he?!”_

_“Aseles, he left…”_

_“No! He couldn’t have left!”_

_“Aseles, please.”_

_“No! I have to find him before he’s gone!”_

_“….He already is. I’m sorry.”_

 

The ceiling of the gummi ship took at least ten minutes to sharpen in her view, with the sounds of the gears and clicking buttons slowly drilling into her hearing. The day before yesterday seemed nothing but some surreal, distant dream, and ever since looking at the Fountain Courts, Aseles’ dreams have consisted nothing but sharp recollections of the image, and the murmuring of words she could never remember after. She knew they were important...and it bugged her immensely to have them simply go out the other ear. Everything was essential now; Aseles didn’t know how to hold onto _all_ of it.

Seeing the Courts did not ease anything...it only complicated things that much more.

Aseles sat up in her chair, seeing Sora, Donald and Goofy were all still asleep, the ship left on auto-pilot. With the new upgrades, Aseles was not too worried about security, and was favorable of the improved engine to travel the galaxy faster. She looked to the grid Donald had panned out, and her eyes redirected to the world that was approaching a few miles away.

She stood up after she let the belt slide off her arms, and she walked steadily over to Donald who was slumped in his chair. Aseles moved the wheel of the ship to the side, and she bent to pick up Donald underneath by his arms. She grunted but lifted him easily, his wadded feet dangling as she waddled him over to her prior seat. Donald grumbled in his slumber, but settled in the arm of the chair once Aseles rested him back down. She tied the belt around the snoozing duck, and seated herself in the driver’s armchair. Strapping herself in and taking the steering wheel in hand, she turned off the pilot and began to sail the ship easily ahead.

_“You must be strong for what is to arrive. It matters....immensely.”_

Aseles’ fingers grasped and dug into the rubber of the control, her feet tapping onto the group in hassled pace. 

_“There’s much more than you could ever know….about the weapon you’re holding in your hand.”_

“Not now...” Aseles hissed, rubbing her head roughly as she shut her watery eyes, then opened them. She gazed ahead to the abyss of green and purple swirls of light, the stars illuminating her view. 

 

_Keyblade war...._

_Keyblade war......_

 

“Why did it have to go that way?” Aseles inhaled sharply, leaning forward in her seat, trying to press her knee against her stomach to stop the lurching of grappling hands to the center of her chest.

_“You must let me be. My heart is telling me to do this, and I’m afraid there’s nothing to change my mind... Aseles, you will remember, without me.”_

“When do I...though?” Aseles sniffed, rubbing her eyes off with her arm before trampling the thoughts away. Fast approaching the world, Aseles set the ship on auto, and after wiping her eyes clean, went to wake the others. Goofy thanked Aseles for managing the ship while Donald was more surprised of how he even got to her chair. Sora was last to rise, with his blue orbs filling the gaps in Aseles’s chest with optimistic opportunities. She smiled at his smile, and the group began to prepare with potions and ethers in hand as they approached the world. 

??? POV: 

He was a slim and sly man, with a conniving smirk stretched across his face. His malicious, purple irises scanned the area meticulously, darting back and forth to the victims who walked on by without any chance of escaping his plans. He was hidden well in an alley, concealed in the shadows that he usually loved to lurk in. His long fingers cupped around the coin he had thieved from a poor sucker on the street earlier. With a grin, he lifted it up to his face, but it could not keep his smile for long. He frowned, quite disappointed of his poor win. He could have more. 

He thought for a moment, leaning against the wall. If he could somehow have all the riches in the world…Suddenly, at that moment, a white, opened limo passed by, a man of orange hair and large stature sitting behind in the passenger compartment with his face inside his newspaper. The wicked man’s eyes darted down the street to the little newspaper boy…who held a whole wad of cash given to him just moments before.

With a disgusted scoff, the trickster knew exactly who that was: “Big Daddy”, the sugar mill owner of the town. He had big money, _lots_ of it. If only there was some way to get his hands on that loot, that power, then the town would be at his knees.

He hummed in thought, revealing himself to the sunlight of the world, brightening the view of possibilities to make his plans come to life.

ASELES’ POV: 

The atmosphere was so jubilant and warm here, Aseles felt immensely relaxed when she finally touched ground. The group walked their way from the abandoned site of road, and began to head toward the habituated town in the distance. Once there, Aseles looked toward the town square a mile away, a few brick buildings around the streets at least one block long and reaching four stories. 

With shops and cafes running along the lower portions of the structures, apartments rested on the top floors with draped curtains and hanging trinkets set outside to indicate so. Tiled rooftops arched and curved over windows while flat roofs rested to create large arches on the top of buildings. The paved roads of stone thudded gently underneath Aseles as she walked, her eyes scanning the diversity of residents of the world. Fashion was clearly something her and her group was lacking, with men suited in dashing suits and woman frolicking in beautiful dresses and tilted hats. Jazz music and tapping feet echoed across the streets, and Aseles could see a pier at the banks of a large lagoon and a swamp in the distance. A ferry floated, painted in a beautiful white coat and golden decorates lavished along the sides. Much more intricate and larger than the steamboat from Timeless River. 

The sky beamed a bright blue, insinuating it was the spike of the afternoon. Walking toward the town in awe, the four stayed relatively close together from the lack of any knowledge of the place, and ended up in the main road with a railroad track spreading across the street for a trolley. On both sides stood restaurants of all sorts, but the most common special of each one had a special on gumbo. Lights hung across to stretch from roof to roof. All in all, nothing seemed out of the ordinary…

“So, where do we start?” Aseles pointed out as the four walked along the sidewalk, Sora and Goofy in front with Donald and Aseles in the back. 

“Considering we’ve never been here, I believe splitting up will let us cover more ground,” Sora advised with his hands resting at the back of his head. Goofy hummed in thought, glancing to the several people passing and giving them odd looks. 

Donald tapped in foot in response of their prying eyes, and nodded, “Sure sure, but let’s get going.”

“I’ll follow Sora, then,” Goofy smiled, patting his shoulder. 

“Then Donald and I will take the upper street,” Aseles agreed. 

“We’ll take the area here,” Sora pointed with a finger, “We should meet back here within an hour or two. Sounds good?” The group approved with final nods and thumbs-ups. Aseles and Donald began to walk up the street, with Aseles occasionally looking at the citizens and the fresh-new look of buildings. They seemed built in earlier years, but something was simply alluring in their structural holds.

“I’m surprised no one has asked about you, Donald,” Aseles raised a brow, looking at the duck with a quirk of a smile.

“What, no one has ever seen a duck before?” he retorted with crossed arms.

Aseles chuckled, “Not a walking or talking duck, I’m sure.” The duo continued to stroll, but the more they did, Aseles noticed that the scenery was somewhat changing. Lampposts of Victorian designs were filling the corners of the streets, and the houses began to grow tremendously in gated lands.

“Those are some big houses,” Donald pointed out to the large residences to the left side. Made of tough and white stone, they were built up to at least two stories high, and reaching three. The wealthy side of town? Perhaps. 

“Don’t even think about it, duck,” Aseles quickly snagged the back of Donald’s jacket. She received a grumble in reply, “We’re not here for sightseeing. I can already see that glimmer in your eyes. There’s nothing for us here.” The two began to make their way across the street to reach the other side of the sidewalk. The further they walked, Aseles could not lay a finger on another suspicious activity. She found them almost rounding the entire town, until they hit a waterway that hit another pier. The sun was now setting, and she was already tired from the walk they had taken to get here. Worst case scenario, the bad luck had to come to them.

“I think we should split up, or else we won’t gain enough floor,” Aseles insisted. “This was waaaay bigger than I thought it was going to be.”

“You sure that’s a good idea?” Donald arched a furrowed brow. 

“Well, nothing will happen,” Aseles shrugged, “Or something would’ve already happened. But I won’t touch anything if you won’t.”

“Fair enough,” Donald replied with a straightening of his jacket, “We’ll meet in this pier around forty minutes.”

“Alright, sounds good,” Aseles sighed, running her fingers through her hair. She and Donald parted away, with Aseles trying her best to not get distracted by any of the highlights of the town. They were on a mission, but how tempting it was to engross herself here versus the persistent, convoluted thoughts waiting idly in her mind.

After a while of looking across the outside path near the river, Aseles wondered if she had maybe trekked too far to find her way back. Not one thing or person was sticking out from the world, and frankly she was feeling too out of place now to trek alone. She hummed in thought, crossing her arms as she tried her best to keep herself calm about the spotlight that was slowly beginning to shine onto her. However, Aseles spotted a place not too far off, and it looked abandoned from the outside. It had boarded up windows...but the doors were open. Did some Heartless get inside? She walked over in a hurried pace until she finally reached the doors. 

Cautiously, Aseles peered inside, widening the space of the door with the tips of her fingers to fully enter properly without making a sound. The entire floorboard was covered in dust, and the ceiling nearly consisted of spider webs. The sunshine from outside gleamed and swam through the crevices of the wooden walls and ruined rooftop. Random wooden planks and sections of ropes were set around the ground, as if someone were planning to construct or fix something inside. A staircase led toward the second floor above. Nothing of darkness seemed to be here.

“Hello?” Aseles called out, stopping in the middle of the empty space. Suddenly, she whirled around to face the shadow that had creaked the door fully open. With nowhere to hide, Aseles waited guardedly...but she relaxed at the sight of a pretty, colored woman walking in. Dressed in a yellow, vibrant dress and green coat, her rounded face inspected Aseles closely. Aseles gulped, but waved nervously.

“Um....hey, sorry, I-“ Aseles began, but paused once the woman stood right in front of her, her knuckles on her hips and her face leaning as an attempt to scold.

“Say, what are you doing here, little lady?” the woman questioned. She wagged a finger forward to Aseles, making the brunette look at it, “You know you’re crossing private property??”

“Uh, sorry about that. I was just looking for something....I lost,” Aseles quickly replied. “I thought I would find it here.”

“Oh, I’m sorry about that. What did you lose?” the woman asked politely. Her charm was nonetheless intriguing, and her eyes gleamed from Aseles’ new dilemma.

“Uh-uh, see, I lost my-um, my pet! My duck,” Aseles stuttered, flattening her arms at her sides. 

The woman raised an eyebrow, “Your pet…duck?”

“Yes, my pet duck. I was chasing him, and he ran off,” Aseles cleared her throat, angling her head to the side to recover whatever truth she had left. 

The woman quirked her mouth to the side, but she began to giggle, “You’re one strange, little lady.”

“Uh, thanks....” Aseles sweat dropped. “It’s nice to meet you, by the way. Sorry for barging into your place.”

“Well, it’s very nice to meet you too. Though, I will admit, this isn’t my place...yet,” the woman stretched her hand out. Aseles took it gladly. “My name is Tiana.”

“Mine’s Aseles,” Aseles let go once Tiana did. “But what do you mean not yet? I mean your place.” She indicated with a thumb to the back of the building. 

“Oh, I’m going to buy it soon,” Tiana smiled.

Aseles blinked, “What for?”

“Oh, I’m opening our very own restaurant,” Tiana clapped enthusiastically. “My daddy, my mom and me, of course.”

“Really? That must be exciting for them too,” Aseles smiled widely. Ambitious, Aseles admired it extremely. 

“Well…my father passed away, but I know he’s proud of me,” Tiana smiled. Aseles’ smile dropped, but she nodded nonetheless. “I can’t wait to show my mom though. She’s going to love it....aside from the dust and spiders.”

“OH. I’m really sorry to hear that,” Aseles scratched her cheek, then rubbing it roughly afterwards. “I mean, about your dad.”

“Oh that’s quite alright. Speaking of parents, where are yours? It’s not the time to be wandering out all on your own at this time of day. Night will hit fast soon.”

Aseles swallowed roughly, looking to the ground to Tiana’s oxford shoes. “Right....well you see I’m with friends today.”

Tiana drummed her fingers on her hips, “Oh, not sneaking out are you?”

“Uh, no no, nothing like that,” Aseles waved her hands, trying to avoid getting personal. Bringing up one dead father was already bad enough. “We just sort of separated.”

“Say, would you like to accompany me to a ball tonight?” Tiana asked.

Aseles raised a brow of the sudden invitation, “A ball? Well, I would like to find my friends first. Is it alright if they come along with me?”

“Of course, the more the merrier. I would like some help with the treats I’m going to be handing out tonight,” Tiana smiled widely, “And you seem like a swell gal.”

“Where is it going to be?” 

“Head to that section of the town,” Tiana pointed, leading to where her and Donald had left from, “It’ll be the huge mansion with loud music, you can’t miss it. If they ask you who invited you, say Tiana.”

“Oh, okay!” Aseles smiled at her generous offer, “We’ll be glad to help. Then I’ll go look for my friends.”

“Try not to be late,” Tiana waved as Aseles hurried out, giving one last goodbye before dashing toward the outskirts of the town where she had split with Donald. She wasn’t going to miss some free food tonight.

SORA’S POV:

It was either the fact that nothing was going wrong or that everything was going perfect since they got here that was bothering him. Or it was the insistent darkness that thudded at the back of his brain like a nagging finger. It had all been trial and error of containing whatever was inside of him, but Sora was sure he had it under control...or else he was going to regret not talking about it with Riku when he had the chance.

Oddly enough, he was surprised Riku didn’t even sense anything when they arrived; maybe Sora was getting better, which was a relief. He felt he was straining his friendship with Aseles, taking into account that Vanitas _did_ attempt to knock her out. He had to make it up to her, for all the support she was giving him, and the fact she hadn’t told anyone. The more the scenario played out, the worse he felt in those days when Aseles had to keep this all to herself...at least he had someone to talk to about it. 

“Doesn’t look like anything is this way,” Goofy scratched his cheek, looking around the emptying street. The sun was setting, and Sora was mostly pleased that it was nearly time to meet up with Donald and Aseles again. Since they were here, maybe the four of them could get some of that gumbo that was being affiliated with most of the restaurant signs outside. It sure looked tasty.

The two appeared before a loading dock, a huge boat of white and royalty pulling up to the crowd of onlookers. Cheers and applause rang across the street to him and Goofy, in spite of being a good distance away. The two shared a glance, but nodded in agreement.

“Let’s go check it out,” Sora replied. When they had arrived, there was a man of young age with a heavier tan complexion than Aseles. The man wore a sweater vest and straight slacks, boldly dancing in front of the crowd while playing a ukulele. Next he tossed his jacket aside, now sporting a cap and a hip cocking out. The crowd of girls seemed pleased of his entrance, making Sora roll his eyes of the too flashy show. Though, his eyes caught sight of some of the welcome signs, and he read **WELCOME!** and **PRINCE NAVEEN!**. Yup, he was a prince. Good detective work, Sora.

“AHH!” a hoard of girls screamed of the man’s flashing smile, and down the street the prince suddenly strolled, and for a moment, he had disappeared. The crowd parted ways, especially the girls that were keen on finding him. As Sora tried to look with Goofy, he noticed a stumbling man that stood out from the crowd...trying to avoid it too.

Wearing a fine, black suit and refined leather shoes, the man was funny-looking with a bald spot covered by a small, black hat he smacked onto himself angrily. He was of wide stature with gray sideburns slapped at the sides of his rounded face. He seemed fragile, even though he seemed to have no problem carrying the five suitcases he was entrusted with. He was red in the face, clearly humiliated from the attention he was gaining, but he seemed to be going on in a specific direction. Was he the prince’s lackey?

“Gosh, that entire luggage sure seems heavy,” Goofy scratched his head, “Maybe we should go help him, Sora?”

“Yeah, sounds like a good idea,” Sora smiled. “But we have to hurry, or we’ll be late to meet the others.” The idea of food was finally getting to him.

??? POV:

As if this couldn’t get any better, the prince of Maldonia was here. HA! His plan was falling right into place. Clearly, his pawns were always at his disposal. 

A masquerade ball was being held by “Big Daddy” for the prince’s arrival, as he had seen on the front cover of the newspaper today. His scheme was brewing, and soon he would have the town in the palm of his hand: simply marvelous timing. The pieces were falling into place, so he was going to make sure no one was going to screw it no, no matter who got in his way. He already owed the Other Side so much, he was literally indebted to them at this point, and the next two life spans.

“Hmm?” the witch doctor looked from the end of the alley, looking to see the prince and his valet approaching, tumbling somehow from all the dancing the prince had invited him to. The crowd scattered, and here the evil man saw his opportune moment. He began to walk forward, but halted, his eyes darting to the left to see a strange pair: a young teen, and a dog? Hmm, very interesting, but not the strangest thing he has witnessed. An unexpected variant...however, Darkness brewing? Was he seeing this or was this old man pushing it too much on detecting the Darkness in people’s hearts lately?

With a confident smile and excellent exquisite, the slim man walked forward, striding to the prince and valet who still lay on the floor, the suitcase scattered around them. 

“Sire, please get off!” the stumpy valet contorted. 

“Lawrence, have a little fun,” the jubilant, free prince laughed, helping Lawrence sit up. The man’s thin figure shadowed over their faces, and the two men looked up once they noticed the presence. At the side, the witch doctor knew that the boy and dog had stopped, and had hidden themselves from view. Aw, what, too shy now?

“Salutations, gents. Welcome to New Orleans,” the man greeted with a terrific smile. He offered his cane toward the prince who gladly took it as a kind gesture. The man pulled out his thin fingers out of his worn-out jacket, handing the prince and his unwise assistant his purple card.

“Interesting. Mr. Facilier,” Prince Naveen read the card, blinking at its creative design that held a skull with a top hat on the right, and the prince reading on the left:

**Doctor Facilier  
** Tarot Readings, Charms, Potions  
Dreams Made Real 

“I won’t waste your time, so I’ll come clean, eh? I have a wager for you, my good man,” Dr. Facilier replied. “You look like a man with royalty, coming from a land far away, and ready to wed a dear woman who will offer you all the prosperity you desire.”

“That is amazing! Lawrence, this man just read my life,” the prince’s mouth gaped open as he looked at his attendant. 

“Or perhaps he’s just figured your life in the newspaper,” Lawrence squinted his eyes. “It’s best to leave sire, you have a masquerade to get to-“

“Hey, hey!” Dr. Facilier countered back, towering over the valet. “Then you must’ve known that there are also two onlookers following you, hiding behind the entrance of the alley just a few feet away.” The prince and stout man blinked, looked at one another, and turned to prove Dr. Facilier’s words correctly. The caught duo could do nothing but finally reveal themselves with a nervous smile. 

“Uh, sorry,” the brunette teen smiled sheepishly while scratching the back of his head.

“They were following us! Amazing!” the prince excitedly replied, clearly taken with Dr. Facilier’s charm. 

“Well, come now, speak your intentions,” the witch doctor shrewdly asked. The brunette boy and dog walked to now only be a few feet aside from him. 

“We just wanted to…help you with your bags,” the boy started while glancing to Lawrence and Naveen.

“Uh huh, uh huh,” the strange, walking dog replied. 

“Oh, then I suppose you don’t mind joining us? After all, you did want to aid the prince,” Dr. Facilier encouraged. He placed both of his hands on the top of the orb of his cane, setting it firmly in front of him like another leg. He stood proudly, delighted that his plan was coming together flawlessly. 

“Sure, why not? It’ll be fun,” Naveen walked forward, wrapping an arm around the boy. “What might your names be?”

“Uh, I’m Sora, and this is Goofy-“

“Sora! Goofy! How delighted to meet you! Come, we’ll have your lives read as well by this remarkable man!” Naveen began to pull the boy named Sora forward, with his friend Goofy following behind. 

“Sire! Please!” Lawrence began to object, trying his best to hold the suitcases in his arms. 

“Right this way, gents!” Dr. Facilier led the way into a specific alley where his small shop was. Behind him, he saw the prince hurrying excitedly, with Sora and Goofy giving each other apprehensive looks and the valet Lawrence looking miserable. Well, it was all about to change; a fun game it would be.

“Sire, we must head back!” Lawrence tried again, still holding the suitcases and tugging on the prince’s shoulder when he finally arrived beside him. “This is just a load of-“

“Don’t you disrespect me, little man!” the doctor snapped again. Lawrence leaned back as the prince blinked in surprise of the sudden shout. Sora and Goofy narrowed their eyes, and the witch doctor knew he had to save face to keep them tied to accompany.

“Don’t you dare interrogate, or derive. You’re in my world now, not your world,” Dr. Facilier drew his cane upward, the purple orb shooting a fire ball toward the sign of his shop. There was decorated top hat just like his own, having a skull in the middle with three lighted skulls lined up below it. It read: **Dr. Facilier’s Voodoo Emporium**. “And I’ve got friends on the other side,” the man pulled his cane from the ground again, lifting it up slowly toward the lavender door on his right. The creaking door opened on its own, catching the four in surprise.

Like taking candy from a baby.

LATER, DONALD’S POV:

Donald walked sluggishly, feeling the night coming soon, and not to mention the thudding sores on the bottom of his feet. He had been walking for a while, and had come across nothing but horrible temptations of taking any shiny thing he could find. He wondered if Aseles had any luck....finding something valuable in this world that is. Not that they came to loot anything...but a trinket worth some munny sounded good if they didn’t find anything.

“Huh?” Donald looked toward an abandoned street, seeing something glow green and purple from a certain alley. Okay, whatever was glowing purple and green, it wasn’t good in his book.

Looking around cautiously, Donald found no one in the sidewalks, and pulled his wand out to give himself courage to approach the abandoned alleyway. He walked along the dark, brick walls and at the end the glowing had ceased, leaving nothing but silence.

“Uh…” Donald blinked a couple of times, but walked inside the lot a little more cautiously. There, his eyes looked upon a lavender door, and it opened, revealing a thin, tall man of dark complexion and voodoo trinket along the bottom rim of his top, worn hat. He wore dark slacks, a dark jacket, and a purple vest underneath. Not someone Donald had ever seen before, and he looked rather suspicious with the way he quirked his grin.

“Hey there, my fowl friend. Would you like to have all your dreams come true?” the man asked with a raised eyebrow. In his hand he swung a cane, carrying a purple orb on top of it.

“Dreams?” Donald questioned, quite unsure why that would be the first thing he would ask.

“Yes! Quite so! You seek riches, gold, green, dough,” the man walked forward, and with an extension of his lean fingers, a pile of gold coin emerged. Donald’s eyes widened as the sight, his tongue sticking out in complete, utter senselessness of the treasure bestowed in front of him. He held out his greedy hands, and there the man settled the coins, but they only evaporated into purple dust once he fully let them go.

The duck’s eyes saddened extremely, leaving his fingers open, “AW…”

“But don’t worry, I can make you plenty more inside,” the man sneered. “What do you say? Want to give it a try?” Donald was unsure of his intentions....but boy was he ready to be swimming in a gold lake like his Uncle Scrooge. 

“I say, what we are waiting for?!” Donald immediately sprinted inside, and the man followed behind, giving a cynical laugh.

“If that’s what you want…Donald Duck.” 

The door slammed shut, and then there was a shrieking quack seconds after.

AN HOUR LATER  
ASELES’ POV:

Aseles wasn’t sure how long she waited, but it was enough to tell her that Donald was missing. She wondered if he went to go meet up with Goofy and Sora, but the streets were absent of their presence as Aseles stood there, peering over the figures who decided to come out tonight. Yeah, no sign of them....and it worried her a bit. 

“Where are you guys?” Aseles groaned, running her hair back and constantly darting her eyes among the crowds. The moon was already out, and in an ease to calm her, she stared at its reflection upon the surface of the lagoon not too far off. After waiting another good amount of time, Aseles shook her head. They couldn’t have forgotten, they were missing for sure. Maybe Tiana saw them earlier, but mostly it was an excuse to be with someone she already knew from this world. It was better being with someone than being alone. Maybe...they were at the party? 

“UGGGGGGGH,” slumping forward, Aseles began to head out of the pier and back toward the town of New Orleans, hurrying her pace with arms swinging to keep up with her movements. She hoped she wasn’t too late to meet Tiana, and the closer she got to the Victorian-like section of the town, the better she felt. The sound of soft music colored itself into the air, and Aseles looked to see a group of people dressed in costumes heading to a particular mansion.

Aseles made sure to stay a few yards behind, and once they went inside the large, double doors, she peered from the brick pillar, exhaling out. She didn’t even know if she had to have a costume to en- who was she kidding, her clothes in this world were already costume enough. 

She strode up the steps quietly, and walked toward the elaborate, decorated door that were at least ten feet tall. She hesitated with the golden handle, and instead rang the doorbell beside. She waited with hands lightly tapping her thighs, her feet tapping a bit to the soothing beat radiating from the backyard. Finally, someone came to the door. 

A butler of high stature was there, nose sticking up with his eyes not even looking to Aseles for more than two seconds, “May I help you?”

“Um, I’m here for the party-“

“The party is not open for commoners, unless you have a specified invitation,” the butler interrupted, holding out his hand.

“Uh, no-“ Aseles started.

“Then you cannot enter-“

“But a friend invited me,” Aseles cut in. “Is Tiana here?”

“Tiana? Oh. The friend of Charlotte La Bouf. Are you here to help her with her stand of beignets?”

“Yeah I am.”

“Right this way. Please come in,” the butler stepped aside, and slowly Aseles made her way in in. The huge entrance room was by far more flashy than the Beast’s Castle, with a massively wide chandelier of crystal hanging. The entire scenery reminded of Aseles of an angelic presence that only some sort of Olympus god would walk in. The ceiling was painted with angels, their wings tangling around one another with pillars and buttresses at the corners polished to perfection. A spiral staircase led to the upstairs rooms, and Aseles could only guess how many rooms this mansion had. 

The butler began to lead her around the staircase and toward a flipping door that led into the kitchen. An exit from the spacious cooking scene lead to the large, costume party outside. Sections of tables were evenly scattered to surround the marble floor that had been set as the dance floor, though people seemed more bored than entertained. A band played near the center-side of the guests, and far off past the groups of people was a huge pond with a small bridge over it. A long, horizontal table rested near the mansion’s lower base, where food was presented and handed out. It didn’t take long for Aseles to spot Tiana who was adorned in a medieval costume, and was serving pockets of bread coated in honey and sugar.

“Thanks,” Aseles waved to the butler who retreated with a bow, and headed back through the kitchen. 

“Aseles!” Aseles smiled genuinely to the waving Tiana. She walked over, and was greeted with Tiana’s wide smile. 

“You did come! For a second, I thought I was going to be serving these by myself,” Tiana chuckled, “Did you find your friends?”

“Oh, um, no, they didn’t show up,” Aseles rubbed her head, “Have you seen them around, maybe? One is....well one has brown, spiky hair, and the other two are...erm...”

“Hmm, no, not that I’ve seen, honey. Hopefully they haven’t gotten into any trouble,” Tiana reassured. Eh…those three, anything could happen. Gosh, that’s what Aseles was afraid of. She sighed in defeat, but looked to the treats Tiana was handling on silver plates.

“What are these? Beignets?” Aseles recalled from what the butler had said.

“Yes! Do you want to try one?” Tiana grabbed some tongs, and held one piece toward her. Aseles blinked a bit, but took the treat with a thanks. Her fingers were instantly powered with sugar, making her mouth water of the temptation. She lifted the pocket to her lips, and took a mouthful. The next second, her eyes shot open from the wondrous flavor invading her taste buds. The taste was incomparable with anything she had ever eaten. The honey mixed with the sugar as she chewed, and she couldn’t help but roll her eyes back from the delightful heaven in her mouth.

“These are so delicious. Do you cook?” Aseles groaned out.

“I’m glad you like them! And yes, I do,” Tiana smiled with a soft giggle.

“You have talent!” Aseles cheered eagerly after finishing the delicious treat. “So you’re friends with Charlotte? Who is she?” 

“Oh! Charlotte and I have been friends since we were practically babies,” Tiana explained. “Her dad is the one who’s hosting this party. He’s also the owner of the sugar mill in town. His name is Eli La Bouf, but he’s known as “Big Daddy”.”

“Wow. Who’s the party for then?” Aseles cleaned off her hands with a wet towel that was beside, helping Tiana with setting the treats on their according plates for the arriving guests.

“For a Prince Naveen, if I remember correctly,” Tiana hummed, quick and careful of her motions with the food.

“Tia!!” Aseles jumped in fright, catching the escaped beignet back onto its plate. She looked over to see a blond, young woman was dashing to the table, frantically pushing anyone who stood in her way. Aseles could only guess this was Charlotte, but by glance Aseles could already tell they were completely opposite. 

The woman was wearing a pink, puffed dress and a sparkling, golden crown on her bun-up air. Obviously portraying a princess, she sort of fit into it fine, since she looked like one. Her cheeks were coated with pink blush, and her long eyelashes bestowed the constant mascara she must’ve put on to compliment her eyes. 

“What’s wrong?” Tiana questioned, going around the stand, and held her friend by her shoulders.

“Prince Naveen isn’t here!” Charlotte cried, snatching some nearby napkins on the table and stuffing them inside her dress and underarms, “I’m sweating like a sinner in church!” Aseles covered her mouth quickly, halting the burst of laughter that had abruptly halted in her throat. Charlotte noticed her presence, and smiled nervously. Aseles could only wave as an introduction.

“I’m sure he’ll come soon,” Tiana reassured, rubbing Charlotte’s upper arm. 

“I never get anything that I want!” Charlotte cried one last time, and began to head to the spiral staircase that led to the second floor. Aseles stared dumbfounded, and took a look once around the backyard: this wasn’t getting what she wanted? Really? 

Before she could go up the first step, she stopped, looking up at the sky in a frantic prayer, “Maybe if I really wish it, it’ll come true!” Charlotte clamped her fingers together, almost kneeling on the ground and began to wish hysterically with her eyes closed, and her lips muttering her deepest desire. At this point, not even her sanity could be saved.

Tiana sighed, walking over to Charlotte and patting her friend’s bare back, “You can’t honestly just wish upon a star and hope that everything will come tru-“

“LADIES AND GENTLEMEN, PRINCE NAVEEN!” A male announcer at the microphone shouted, completely interrupting Tiana’s life lecture. Aseles followed the gaze of the crowd, all heads bowing to the young, tanned man who was approaching the dance floor with a stunning smile and costumed in his prince attire. Charlotte’s face immediately beamed, quickly disposing the napkins she had on her and tossed them aside. She kissed Tiana on the cheek who stood stunned of the turn of events, but shrugged and smiled at her friend introducing herself to Prince Naveen. His charismatic smile immediately captivated Charlotte. 

The crowd dispersed, and on the dance floor was only Naveen and Charlotte, waltzing to the music that began to play. Tiana swayed in place, standing beside Aseles who in turn hummed to follow. 

“That’s really nice of you,” Aseles replied.

“Hmm, what is?” Tiana questioned.

Aseles chuckled, shaking her head, “Nothing-“ Aseles jumped in place, briefly yelping to the horse that popped up from the front of the table. There was humored laughter from inside it, and the costumed people in the horse trotted to the side to stand beside Tiana. The two halves parted, and revealed were two business men who began to instinctively go for Tiana’s beignets. 

“Hello, Tiana, good evening eh?”

“Mr. Fenner! And…Mr. Fenner,” Tiana greeted. They greeted Tiana with a smile.

“Nice to see you’re enjoying yourself, Ms. Tiana,” the tall, skinny Fenner replied.

“Of course! Not as much after I sign those papers of my restaurant,” Tiana giggled. The two men looked at one another, then back at Tiana. Aseles already knew from their glance.

“About that…” the same Fenner continued. Aseles crossed her arms, already listening to the hesitation in his tone. 

“You were outbid,” the short, brother Fenner stated plainly. Tiana’s face fell, her eyes scanning the words that were swarming in front of her eyes. 

“Outbid? What do you mean?” Tiana tossed her arms forward, shoulders tensed and legs apart.

“A man is willing to give us the money, all cash,” the short Fenner replied.

“But you knew how long it took me to get that money!” Tiana argued, her arms now clutching fists. The two Fenner’s fixed the glasses on their faces, continuing to eat Tiana’s beignets. Aseles gritted her teeth, ready to pry them away from their greedy hands.

“And that is a sign that a woman of your...background isn’t fit to run a restaurant all on your own,” the tall Fenner replied. What the- OH HECK NO. Sexism and racism, Aseles is calling it.

“No, wait!” Tiana rushed forward, gripping the tail of the short Fenner’s horse costume as they rapidly began to dodge away from the scene Tiana was making. The two men only pulled away, and Tiana suddenly lost her grip, falling back. Aseles gasped and reached, but missed catching Tiana from crashing. Her hands slapped onto her face, her eyes peering through the gaps to see Tiana had fully slammed onto her stand of food. All the sugar and honey was poured onto her costume, and Aseles heavily regretted not being quick enough.

“Tiana!” Aseles kneeled before her, and helped the woman stand. She tried to wipe off all the honey with nearby napkins, and the sugar that had been slapped onto her face and curly, dark hair. Aseles growled to the two men who had turned to stare at the mess, but once they met Aseles’ glower they quickly walked away, fully costumed into one horse once more. They had the right costume though: they were both a horse’s ass.

“Are you okay?” Aseles sighed, rubbing Tiana’s back.

“I’m…fine,” Tiana replied sulkily. Aseles frowned, prying away the remaining food that had gotten into her hair.

“Hey, Tia, I think I have a good chance of- Oh my, what happened?” Aseles looked up, seeing Charlotte had returned. Her face had fallen to concern, seeing Tiana covered in a complete mess and her stand knocked down. “Tia, are you okay?”

“I-I...“ Tiana couldn’t finish, unsure how to respond really

“Do you have another costume for her?” Aseles cut in, “It was my fault, I’m sorry.” 

Charlotte looked to her, but she smiled with a nod, “It’s okay. C’mon sugar, let’s go find you something else to wear.” Charlotte took Tiana’s hand and began to lead her up the spiral staircase. Aseles sighed, rubbing her head of the unfortunate event. What a way to end Tiana’s night...maybe Aseles could give her some of her munny...

Respectively, Aseles picked up the table easily on its four legs, and placed all the scattered, broken plates onto the tablecloth. With a tie on top, she hauled it up onto the table once more, knowing it would be useless to pick up the food. Unless people wanted some unexpected salad with their desserts.

“Hmm?” Aseles looked behind the table to her left, seeing a dog sitting there, and looking up at her. She raised a brow, and took a look around to see if someone was missing it. When she heard a whimper, she looked down, and saw the dog swing something it held in its mouth. It looked like some emerald pouch. It looked like some familiar hat she saw.

“Watcha got there, boy?” Aseles reached to take the pouch, but what she saw inside made her gasp. She fell back, trying her best to regain any words in her mouth. On her lap was a duck, but it immediately reminded her of Donald as if he were in the Pride Lands. And that was not a darker version of Pluto...it was freaking Goofy.

“D-DONALD?! GOOFY!?” Aseles staggered to her knees, seeing Donald cross his arms, and impatiently tap his feet on the ground. Oh jeez they were animals. They were actually animals. NO. NOO. Goofy barked in response, and that scared Aseles even more. She couldn’t understand them. Donald swatted his wing against her knee, and when she looked to see him pointing to the pouch, she saw a wooden charm inside, shaped like some animal skull. She reached to touched it, but the moment she did, all Donald’s quacks turned into words, catching her by surprise. An enchanted spell?

“Can you understand us now?!” Donald huffed out.

“Don’t shout!” Aseles whispered, throwing her arms open, “What the hell happened to you!?”

“This voodoo man turned us into animals!” Donald explained.

“And he’s got Sora!” Goofy finished.

“Sora?! Where is he?! What happened?!” Who had him? She knew something was wrong!

“Where’s Naveen?” Donald questioned, looking at Goofy. Goofy shrugged, scratching his head with a paw.

“Naveen? He’s over there,” Aseles pointed over to where the prince was, near the punch table and serving two cups for him and the arrived Charlotte who was waiting at the dance floor.

“That’s not him!” Donald and Goofy cried. Aseles narrowed her eyes, looking at them, and then back at the prince. What?!

“Not him? Then who is he?!”

“AHHH!” The three suddenly shot up from behind the table, seeing Charlotte on the floor, her dress turned over and exposing her undergarments. The crowd looked at the commotion, and a man in a Roman outfit pointed a finger toward what lingered on the top of the rim of Charlotte’s costume: two frogs.

“Run!” Aseles’ eyes widened at the voice of the male frog, and the protest of the female frog sparked a familiarity.

“I can’t, I’m a frog!” Oh. No. No, Tiana. No. HOW DID THIS HAPPEN.

“Get them frogs, Stella!” the man in the Roman outfit commanded, and another dog that had been sniffing around the party took command, charging to the two frogs head on.

“Quick!” Goofy shouted, but he did not wait to run for it, following the dog named Stella right behind.

“Goofy!” Aseles yelled, running behind as Donald flapped his wings, trying to catch up to the chase. Tiana and Naveen continued to dash for their lives, hopping onto tables and onto the heads of the guests in order to escape the ferocious fangs of Stella. Goofy huffed behind, panting with the attempt catch his breath to catch up, and telling Stella to hold it, though the dog did not oblige. Aseles huffed right behind, excusing herself as politely as she could from the fallen guests and running beside the tables, trying to catch up with Tiana and Naveen, though it proved useless.

“Incoming!” Donald suddenly quaked and zoomed by, making Aseles’ hair fly forward from the rush he had picked up naturally. She skidded to a halt as Goofy tripped in front of her, the two automatically out of the race to save Naveen and Tiana. The pudgy dog named Stella barked, and lunged herself forward, ready to trap the cornered frogs that were strapped along a pair of balloon strings. Donald swooped forward, and Naveen was quick enough to grab onto his webbed feet, pulling Tiana’s arm alongside him.

“Stella! It’s me, Tiana!” Tiana cried as Stella leapt forward, ready to bite Donald back to the ground. The dog’s eyes widened in surprise, and she stopped from attacking, falling downward onto a table, and knocking a huge cake into the air. Goofy and Aseles watched helplessly as it fell upon the two Mr. Fenner’s directly, coating them in bread and frosting. Ah, sweet revenge…sort of.

“Aseles, c’mon!” Goofy whispered. Aseles nervously looked around the party guests that were recovering from the chase, but Aseles was in no mood of explaining what had happened. However, she hurried to help Charlotte to her feet, helping fix her dress down.

“Are you alright?” Aseles asked.

“I’m fine, sugar. A bit....dazed,” Charlotte’s eyes rolled.

“Thanks for the great…party! See ya! Don’t lose sight of them, Goof!” Aseles cut across the dance floor with Goofy already leading to the kitchen door to chase the white figure leading to the distance bayou of New Orleans.


	9. Going Down the Bayou

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Why hello, hello.
> 
> Next chapter is here, and boy is it long. I'm currently not in my house, instead over at my girlfriend's which explains why I'm a bit inactive since New Years. I hope you're all having a great year thus far, and making the most of your free time doing things you love doing. Thank you for taking the time to continue reading my stories, and I hope you find enjoyment in them as I enjoy writing them.
> 
> For my California folks, stay dry, but man am I glad we finally got some rain. I thought we were seriously going to be our own Mad Max movie.
> 
> Sincerely,  
> Keys

SORA’S POV:

His eyes swayed side to side, his eyes fluttering to push out the sand that slipped into his crevices of horizontal seals. He winced from the tender bump that morphed at the edge of his head, and shut his eyes to soothe his rushing mind. He tried to move his wrists, but they seemed to be encased, tied behind him. A hard surface planted beneath his rear, but the moment he tried to move his ankles, he grasped he had been secured to a chair. He was unsure where...he was, or how he ended up being unconscious for that matter. 

“Where....? Goofy...?” Sora could only muster, finally able to flicker open one eye. He found silts of light entering the boarded door. He was in a closet? His eye scavenged around the dim, cramped space, filled with hanging trinkets of yarn and wooden masks. He...he remembered walking into the alleyway, with Goofy and meeting that prince. But then....

“Since you let our froggy prince go, I have to risk asking my friends for help from the other side.” A conniving, familiar voice echoed from the door in front of Sora. Sora grunted, trying to budge away the ropes that help him prisoner, but his efforts proved useless from how dizzy he was. Suddenly, the closet door opened, and Sora looked up to see it was the witch doctor from moments prior. His piercing eyes gazed down to Sora cunningly, making the brunette grit his pearly whites. They shined in the darkness of the room, as well as his oceanic eyes. 

“You,” Sora threatened, the memories of the witch doctor’s fortune replaying in his head. 

_“The darkness inside you will awaken at last, controlling your future, and rewriting the past.”_

Behind Dr. Facilier was the mockup helper of Naveen, Lawrence who seemed to be in ties with whatever the voodoo man was planning. Froggy prince? Was Naveen in trouble?? Were his own friends in trouble??

Sora leaned his head forward, struggling his arms, “Where is Goofy?”

“Ah, hello there boy, looks like you’re finally awake,” Mr. Facilier greeted as if this had been routine.

“Answer me! What have you done with my friends?!” Sora spat back. Did...was Donald here?? Gosh, why could he barely remember anything?? Didn’t Donald walk in? He heard his voice while he was unconscious somehow…. 

“Looks like they ran off. But why should you be worrying? You’re the one who attacked them in the first place,” the witch doctor sneered sinisterly. Sora’s eyes widened, and he felt offended of the remark immediately.

“That’s a lie!” Sora grunted, wincing as he hunched forward in his chair, feeling the bump on his head throb.

“A lie? Why, it’s the simple, pure truth,” Dr. Facilier whispered, gripping the back of Sora’s chair. He suddenly leaned it forward, making Sora’s body dangle diagonally over the floor with the teen now having to glance up at the man. “Not being able to control that darkness of yours is really taking its toll…if you keep battling it. Better to put it to some use. I was surprised you didn’t finish them off. You had the strength-“

“I’ll stop you myself if I have to!” Sora lunged, but fell forward, landing straight into the wooden floor beneath. He complained with a gruff with shut eyes, spitting out the dust that had fallen into his mouth. He felt a warm rush run down the ridge of his nose within his skin.

“Nah-ah-ah. Patience,” Mr. Facilier reached, and his manipulative, animated shadow lifted the head of the chair in one swoop, knocking Sora’s brain back and forth in his skull. “Though, you didn’t tell me you had a lady friend with you.”

Sora’s eyes shot up quickly, automatically defensive and hostile, “Don’t you dare!” Mr. Facilier cackled, gripping his chest as he leaned against the opened door of the closet. Lawrence only stared, unsure what he had gotten himself into. No, how did he find Aseles!? Was she with Goofy and Donald now??

“Indeed, so she means something very important to you. That’s all I need to know,” Mr. Facilier commented, casually spinning his cane in his hand with articulated digits.

“You lay one finger on her--!” Sora squirmed, stomping the floor with his feet.

“Oh, but it won’t be me who will do the dirty deed,” Mr. Facilier smirked again, gripping Sora by the shirt and pulling it toward him. Sora winced again, looking up at the malicious man in front of him. “Why should I leave you out of the fun….hahaha...”

ASELES’ POV  
THE BAYOU:

“I lost them,” Aseles scavenged her sight at the tall trees of the swamp, attempting to get a visual of where Donald, Naveen and Tiana might have landed. “Can’t you sniff them out?”

Goofy panted, falling on his abdomen with his tongue sticking out at the side. He leaned across a fallen tree trunk, trying to regain his breath. She could understand he was tired, but they needed a hint, a lead to go on. It looked unsafe out here, not to mention the idea of running into any Heartless for that matter.

From what Goofy could explain while sprinting beside Aseles, Sora and him had been strolling and found the _real_ Prince Naveen with a helper named Lawrence. A man by the name of Dr. Facilier came up to the two men, and Sora and Goofy were in tow. Goofy could only pant out the words “reading fortunes” and “Sora’s Darkness”, already putting Aseles in an uneasy position. 

From what Goofy stated, Naveen had been tricked into turning into a frog, but Sora’s consequence was far worse; he had begun to thrash around the room, his entire figure transforming. Before Goofy could reach him, Sora had become possessed with something remarkably familiar to that of a Heartless...and attacked Goofy. It wasn’t long after that Donald had been tricked inside as well; the witch doctor had turned Sora against his second friend, and delivered what was necessary to aid the magical man. 

What made Aseles grip her doubt was not the idea of Sora’s Darkness being triggered, but the fact that he was now unable to control it. Why didn’t he talk to Riku when he had the chance?!

“I hear something!” Goofy jolted up from the tree stump, looking over to the left side of the swamp. Aseles moved her attention in the same direction, and tried her best to pick up the sound Goofy was hearing. However, it caused her a bit of trouble...until the sound of a sharp scream rocked the trees. 

“C’mon!” Aseles bolted to a sprint, dodging stumps, barks and vines while her boots stomped and slapped against the groggy water. Her calves screamed and her knees buckled, but Aseles did not stop her stampede until she made it to the opened area of a shallow lake. Her eyes looked past the moving, studded objects in the lake, and saw Donald, Naveen and Tiana all huddled in the corner blocked by tall logs. Then, she realized the moving logs were not...logs. They were alligators.

“AHH!” Tiana screamed, shielding her eyes as Naveen embraced her with Donald gripping them with his wings. He was literally molting in place, his knees chattering each other with his head hunched inwards of his feathery chest. The alligator closest to them heaved his heavy body upwards, craning his neck with a large, toothy smirk on his cracked skin. 

“I got dibs on the duck!” the gator turned over, eying the rest of his posse. Aseles swung her keyblade forward, and she spun it like a maddened boomerang. It caught the predator right in the face, making him skid across the water and hit against a boulder in the water. Aseles caught her keyblade back, and watched Donald, Naveen and Tiana scramble for safety. Aseles now faced the threat of the gators, her keyblade tight in hand. 

“It’s a human!”

“She’s looks mighty tasty!” 

“Get her!” The alligators dove through the water like bullets, but Aseles did not falter in her stance, and charged. 

“Aseles!” Goofy barked out, but Aseles skidded her way across the top of one gator, coating it entirely in ice. The other gators gave chase, but Aseles swung her keyblade effectively across one, and sent it spiraling upwards into the air, and making it hit a branch. With two left, Aseles dodged their snapping deadly jaws. In rapid succession, she kicked herself up and off a boulder, shooting her keyblade downwards with the alligators shooting themselves up to her like a fastened rocket.

“Fire!!” An entire tornado of blaze swooped down from the tip of Aseles’ keyblade, catching the two animals in her attack. Armor skinned now blackened to almost a crisp, the animals fell into the water, and began to run on top of one another to flee within the largest roots of a nearby tree. When all the gators finally disappeared, Aseles sighed and caught herself. She gripped her head, coughing slightly from the water that had seeped onto her skin. The sound of flapping wings caught her attention, and she lifted her head to see Donald fly over with Naveen and Tiana resting on top of him. He landed beside her against the tree, with Goofy hurrying to lick the duck’s face as a greeting. Aseles chuckled, seeing Donald completely unpleased of Goofy’s manners and flicked his wings clean. 

“Goofy missed you,” Aseles joked to the muttering duck. Next was an approaching Tiana, and Aseles could not help but feel terrible of the predicament she was in, “How...in the world....did you turn into a frog in the span of five minutes?”

“Spoiled little rich boy turned me into a frog,” Tiana grumbled as she crossed her arms after shooting a finger to the other frog that had slid off of Donald’s back.

“Hey! That man was charismatic!” the amphibian Naveen defended, tossing his arms upwards before letting them slap at his...slimy sides. Weird...Aseles never thought to see the day of seeing frogs standing on their hind legs. Or anyone turning to a frog. 

“It didn’t do you much good, did it?” Donald grumbled next, siding with Tiana immediately. The royalty prince sighed in defeat, but cleared his throat as he approached Aseles, smirking ever-so easily. 

“But I must thank the striking lady that has saved us. What is your name?” Naveen insisted, his thick accent literally rolling off of his tongue. 

“Aseles, and I don’t really think this is the time for a speed date,” Aseles rolled her eyes, standing up before looking to Tiana, “What happened?”

“....I kissed Naveen-“

“You’ve got to be kidding me-“ Aseles slapped her hand to her face.

“He promised me to help me buy my restaurant!” Tiana defended, accidently stepping onto a patch of wet moss. She kicked it off her foot before slapping her webbed foot down as a sign of anger, “He said he was fabulously wealthy, and said a kiss could break his spell!” 

“Says the woman who lied about being a princess, and was instead dressed up like one!” Naveen cut back, flailing his arms dramatically at his sides. 

“It was a costume party! You told me nothing that I had to be a princess. All you said was to kiss you!” Tiana and Naveen continued back and forth, while Goofy, Aseles and Donald exchanged glances between the two. Knowing Aseles wasn’t going to get anywhere with the two, she set her sights to Donald and Goofy.

“How do we break the spell then?”

“That’s how you break it....unfortunately,” Donald crossed his wings, slumping onto the bark of the tree. “And he has to do it by midnight.”

Aseles’ mouth dropped, “.....You have to be kidding me. He really has to kiss a princess? By midnight?”

Goofy nodded, sulking a bit in his place, “Don’t know where we can find one. I sure hope Sora is okay....” Aseles bit the side of her mouth, and ran her fingers down her face after tugging her bangs in question. She...hoped he was okay too. But maybe, if they broke Naveen’s spell, Sora’s Darkness connection can break. 

“What do we do then?” Tiana asked after heaving greatly from the finished-yet-ongoing argument with Naveen. The prince rested his hands on his hips, briefly looking to the side in annoyance. 

“We might as well find a place to stay,” Aseles scratched the back of her head, and indicated to Donald and Goofy. “These were the friends I was looking for...but I mean...I kind of was lying in your restaurant....but now he’s already a full-fledged duck. See?” Donald shot her a stare, tapping his webbed foot on the soggy floor.

Tiana looked back and forth, and then began to tap her webbed foot in unison, “I knew you were lying to me.”

THE NEXT MORNING:

 

_“Sora?” She walked through the opened door of his room._

_Everything was awfully quiet. Something wasn’t right. He should have answered by now._

_“Sora, you in here?”_

_Aseles body rotated in place, her eyes looking to the figure standing in the dark hallway. Aseles was stunned to move, the glimmer of gold eyes targeting her._

_“How long can you keep this up?”_

_Aseles shot her body around, leaping through the boarded wall of the room, and making it crumble and break like glass. Her arms extended out at her sides, her hair whipping behind her. Her feet thudded roughly against the ground, and she stilled from the sound of crackling glass beneath her. She slowly looked downwards, seeing a different reflection looking to her. It was a male, his storming, hell-bent eyes locking Aseles’ in place._

_“You know you can’t keep this up.” Aseles blinked, the figure no longer there…but right in front of her. “When are you going to learn, Aseles?”  
_

 

The sudden fear and anxiety awoke Aseles, but when she realized she was sleeping on a somewhat damp log, she sighed in pure relief of the lit, bayou sighting. The air was filled with softened rays of the sun, and the leaves among the trees swept and stirred like sleepy wings. The smell of oak and greeny contained Aseles’ sense of smell, providing her a natural scent to wake up to. After a few short seconds, she released a heavy breath. She reached up with cold finger to wipe away the mud that had rested on her cheek, and sat up to find the rest of her friends sleeping on her. 

“Hey…where’s Tiana?” Aseles droned out groggily, feeling Goofy’s head bury into her belly to resume his slumber. Aseles’ eyes looked about, but Tiana was nowhere to be found in the lazy bunch. The keybearer poked at Donald who was on her shoulder, and Naveen who was on top of her head, “Hey, wake up.”

“Huh? Wha?” Donald grumbled, along with a dazed Goofy and yawning Naveen. 

“Where’s Tiana?” Aseles tried again, yawning to inhale the warm air of the bayou.

“Over here.” Aseles wandered her sight to the left, seeing the inspiring chef walking over with a stick her size. She used it like a walking staff, and waved to the group with it. 

“Good morning, you sleepy heads,” Tiana greeted with a chuckle. Aseles groaned roughly from the lifting weight off of her, sitting up to finally be aware of how sore she had gotten overnight. She could feel every crack of her bones as she stood, and the dryness of her skin from the dirt she had slept on. She approached the closest water bank, but cautiously peered over to look down at her reflection. Relieved it was no one else but her, the rushing thought of that figure was quite shocking, but not as shocking as those golden orbs staring back at her from the shadows. Did…Did Aseles really have a firm fear of Vanitas? 

“Well, c’mon, we can’t all just be sitting around. We have to go and break this spell,” Tiana announced as she stood on a log nearby. 

Aseles agreed on the idea, “How do we approach this?”

“Maybe through the water,” Donald signaled, pointing with a wing to the open water beside. Aseles looked about, but smiled to see Tiana tapping onto the log she was standing on.

“This will do nicely.” Tiana hopped off as Aseles gripped the edge of the log. She hummed in thought, but gripped a second to settle the two side by side. With a vine, Aseles began to securely tie the two logs together, and pushed the made raft out with Goofy’s help. Once on the water, it floated nicely, making Tiana grin at the success. 

“Let’s get going,” Aseles smiled. She approached the raft first, seating herself in the back portion of it and indicating Goofy to take the front. Once he did, the raft was well-balanced, and Aseles gestured for Tiana and Naveen to hop onto her arm. Donald swooped over for a short flight, and landed in the middle between Aseles and Goofy, nestling himself happily.

“Ah! It’s like a little canoe,” Naveen automatically laid back, resting against Aseles’ front. She stared at him upside-down, arching a brow.

“Uh…sure?” Aseles blinked, gripping a near branch on a hunched tree for replacing an oar. 

“Don’t mind him. He’s just a lazy lump on a log,” Tiana replied as she gripped her long stick from before and began to help Aseles row through the murky water. Naveen grabbed his own branch off of their “boat”, but filled with cobwebs, he began to play the strings like a ukulele. The prince closed his eyes, letting himself be consumed in the sound of the music. Goofy wadded his paws through the water, helping to push the raft through with Aseles steering in the back. 

“Can’t you help just once?” Tiana fussed with rolling eyes, clearly irritated with Naveen’s lack of teamwork.

“Oh? Well then, I’ll play a little louder,” Naveen began to drum the “instrument” with an up-beat tune, nodding his head along with it.

“That’s not what she meant,” Aseles cleared her throat, continuing to thrust the branch like a paddle in the water.

“Hey-“ Donald began, but he fell flat on his words, staring at Aseles’ arm.

“Why are you giving that creepy look?” the brunette stopped rowing, arching a brow to her feathered friend. Donald resorted to staring with widened eyes, mouth gaped open and his wing trembling to point. Slowly, Tiana and Aseles turned, though Aseles wasn’t sure wha- a pair of eyes were staring at the group from beneath the surface of the water. Oh crap.

“ROW!!” Aseles shouted with a frightened Tiana, the two automatically staking their oars into the water, and hurried moving their made-raft forward. Donald quacked in response, slapping his wings into the water with a flailing Goofy in the front. Naveen was the only one who had not taken the full gravity of the situation; that is until he looked over Aseles’ arm. 

“Row faster!” Tiana shouted, and Aseles resorted to taking out her keyblade, using it to propel the raft with an Aero spell. It was no match for the natural response of the alligator, who cut through the lake like a shot arrow.

“AHH!” Tiana gripped Naveen into a hug as he did the same, squealing in fright as the water splashed out in all directions. The gator hovered over the group, Donald and Goofy pressing against Aseles’ back for protection. Aseles prepared herself as the raft rocketed uncomfortably, but she lifted her keyblade, and-

“I know that tune!! Dippermouth Blues!” the alligator jeered cheerfully, and reached for something under the water. Aseles cracked an eye open, looking up to see the alligator suddenly holding a trumpet, and he began to play it…extraordinarily. Aseles’ mouth fell open as Donald and Goofy recovered from their shock while Naveen and Tiana continued to hold one another, staring at the playing protégé.

“Play it brother!” Naveen let go of Tiana, letting her fall onto the log and continued to perform the beat he was playing a few moments ago on his made instrument. He hopped onto Aseles’ head, and began to groove to the music emitting across the swamp. What.

“Where have you been all my life?!” the gator stopped playing, swinging Naveen around in the water, Aseles swiftly ducking her head down before the predator dragged her with him.

Naveen merely chuckled, reorganizing his spinning eyes, “Where have you learned to play like that?”

“Please, jazz music originates from the bayou! Everyone knows that,” the gator excitedly announced, spinning the trumpet in hand like a skilled acrobat.

“So you’re not gonna eat us?” Donald shook, hanging from Goofy’s neck.

“Psh, no way! I’m pretty sure none of you guys will taste like gumbo,” the gator grinned. That was…..reassuring. A gator who could play jazz, and have a taste for gumbo instead of flesh…never would have Aseles dreamed.

“You’re purty good,” Goofy smiled, relaxing his stance with Donald unbreakable from his neck. 

“Thanks brother,” the gator spun his trumpet triumphantly in his clawed hand. “What I would give to be jamming with the big boys!”

“Why don’t you?” Naveen continued with the group looking to the gator for his response.

“I tried once,” the gator replied. His eyelids dropped halfway, looking deadpanned straight ahead. Seemed like he was recollecting an unwanted memory, “It didn’t end well.”

“It was very nice meeting you, but sadly we have to be moving on. Let’s go,” Tiana replied as she steadied herself on the log, and began to stir with her branch…though the group didn’t move since Aseles was technically steering the raft. However, Aseles respected her hurry; her restaurant was in jeopardy of being sold, and Sora was still in trouble. Their time was running out.

“Right, let’s get going,” Aseles replied, gripping her keyblade like an oar, and beginning to row the boat forward. Though, the gator seemed to like their presence, and began to swim alongside, separating the lilies and weeds in his way to continue following. Aseles looked over, blinking of the gator’s need to socialize. Definitely not like the other ones she had to confront earlier. 

“Hey, where y’all going?” the gator insisted. Donald was still feeling a little uneasy of the predator, and continued to grip onto the unbothered Goofy.

“For somebody to break this spell,” Goofy answered back with an affirmative nod. Tiana followed suite, rowing with Aseles who easily moved the group across the water.

“Spell?” the gator asked again.

“Brace yourself, my friend. We are not frogs, we are people,” Naveen replied matter-of-factly, standing on Goofy’s back and presenting himself to the gator.

“Y’all serious?” the gator’s eyed the frog a bit, to Tiana, Donald and Goofy until finally looking to Aseles.

“Oh, I’m already human. Helping my friends,” Aseles added, steadily picking up pace of their flow. 

“And we are too!” Goofy nodded.

Donald rolled his eyes, “We got turned too, all because Sora had to follow him.” He thumbed Naveen as the prince opened his arms in disbelief. 

“And he had to go messing with the Shadow Man,” Tiana agreed with Donald, the two resisting to glare at Naveen.

“He was charismatic!” Naveen defended, tossing his arms upwards in front of him before staring back at Tiana and Donald. “How should I know he was gonna throw voodoo nonsense around??”

“Voodoo? Like the magic Momma Odie do??” the gator shot up, making Aseles rock the raft from side to side. She flailed her arms to regain their footing, and sighed at this gator’s animated leaps. He was more jumpy than she was, which was saying something.

“Mama Odie?” Asels inquired this time. “Someone else does voodoo magic?”

“Yeah! Momma Odie, the lady that lives in the Bayou. She’s does all this crazy stuff, magic spells, and all kind of hoodoo,” the gator waved his scaly fingers in front of him, trying to give a dramatic effect to his words. 

“Could you take us to her?” Naveen and Tiana immediately asked.

“…..No,” the gator pointed with a finger, and slumped out of the water and toward the bank of the river. There he laid underneath a shady tree, and began to play his trumpet softly.

“So much for that,” Aseles rolled her eyes, letting her keyblade splash into the water in irritation.

“Wait! I’ve got it. Just wait one second,” Naveen exclaimed, and hopped off the log. He swam through the water, and proceeded his way to the gator, but Aseles had trouble picking up their conversation. Normally, it would’ve been fine, but her heightened senses were growing dimmer by the day. She was unsure if it was due to the fact she was worried about other things...

Naveen began to strut his way back from the bank, and hopped onto the log with precision to land beside Tiana. She groaned from the sudden splash, wiping off her face before staring at Naveen in question.

Tiana placed her hands on her hips, tilting her head to the side, “So, what happened?”

“Wait for it, row for a bit,” Naveen wavered his hand, winking at Aseles. The brunette blinked, but before she could dip her keyblade in the water, the waves crashed around, and she had to grip onto the log to prevent herself from falling into the lake. She grunted and pulled herself up, Donald and Goofy also bracing themselves with Tiana having to grip onto Goofy’s tail to pull herself back up.

The returned gator hopped into place, his trumpet held in the curl of his tail, “I just had me a crazy idea! What if I ask Momma Odie to turn me human!?” 

“That sounds like a great idea!” Naveen encouraged. Oh jeezes, what have you done, Naveen? But, if it worked in their favor as well…

“The name’s Louis,” the gator replied, flashing a toothy grin at the gang. 

“I am prince Naveen of Maldonia!” Naveen introduced himself first, making Tiana giving him an intensified, disbelief look.

“Aseles, Donald and Goofy,” Aseles quirked a smile, signaling to her companions.

“And she is Tiana, the waitress,” Naveen flatly replied as he waved a lazy hand toward Tiana. He whispered loudly despite hovering his slanted palm over his mouth, “Do _not_ kiss her.” 

“Wait just a second!” Tiana threw her branch down onto the log, heading over to Naveen, “You’re the one that told me you were wealthy!”

“And you’re the one who told me you were a princess!”

“I did no such thing!!” Tiana argued back.

“Well you didn’t hint me that you were a waitress!” Aseles, Donald and Goofy exchanged glances, sweatdropping of the turmoil that was about to ensue. 

Instead, Aseles cleared her throat to ease the tension, and caught Louis’ attention, “Lead the way.”

The travel drew on, but so did the time they had left. Aseles felt the potential of falling ill, but she knew better than to worry about it; they were on a time crunch, and she grew more worried when the sunset provided little light on the darkening swamp. The trip mainly consisted of Naveen and Louis playing their tunes while Aseles steered and rowed the raft. Tiana was exhausted, and Aseles insisted she take a break, but this woman was determined to be changed back. Of course, Aseles didn’t think she was as bossy Naveen made her out to be; all Tiana wanted was her restaurant, but she couldn’t even obtain that with the lack of money she had now. Her frog-exterior was slightly slouching forward, resting against Goofy’s back with her legs hanging out at the sides. Aseles frowned, seeing Tiana resisting to curl herself up.

“I’m really sorry about your restaurant,” Aseles cut in.

Tiana looked up in response, shaking her head a bit, “I’ll just have to work harder at it, and try to get the money I need for it.” She wavered in her smile, making Aseles frown.

“How much munny do you think you need?” Aseles asked again, drawing in Donald’s attention now.

“I’m not even sure…enough,” Tiana exhaled, shrugging.

“Oh, you cook?” Louis slipped into the conversation casually, having Naveen carelessly laying on top of the gator’s belly while strumming away.

“Oh man, she makes these awesome beignets, you have to try them,” Aseles encouraged, noticing the culinary conversation was uplifting Tiana’s mood. “When you do get that restaurant, those should be on the dessert menu.”

A grumble echoed among the group, and everyone immediately turned to Goofy who chuckled nervously, “Sorry.” Come to think of it, Aseles was feeling a bit hungry herself, rubbing her stomach roughly. She was surprised she wasn’t feeling the effects of a heavy migraine right now, but she was already thanking potions for that. 

“Food does sound good about now,” Donald added, slumping his front against Goofy’s back. 

“Look, there’s a bank,” Aseles started to row harder, and bringing the front of the raft to land. She waited for Goofy to hop off, and she followed next, grimacing at the sight of her prune hands. Jeezes, she looked like a raisin-

“SHH!” Everyone automatically paused, Aseles carefully moving her eyes around to see Naveen…..sitting on a lilypad, surrounded by dozens of fireflies. 

“What are you doing?” Tiana almost hissed, perplexed of his behavior of crouching.

“You’re frightening the food,” Naveen grinned, disappearing into some reeds and bushes. The snap of a flicking tongue arose, but followed by a painful groan. Sounded like he missed. 

“Naveen!” Tiana was quick to follow the prince, leaving Aseles, Donald, Goofy and Louis to stand on the mossy land of the marsh. 

“How far is Mama Odie’s place, Louis?” Aseles asked, the gator momentarily stopping his playing.

“Oh, not too far from here,” Louis scratched his head, gazing to the left and pointing forward, “Should be that way!”

“ACK!” Aseles jumped from the muffled scream, but Goofy was the first to leap to action, dashing across and cutting through the bushes in front. Donald, Aseles and Louis followed behind, and what they saw….was quite…stunning to say the least. 

It looked like Tiana could not hold her hunger as well, and her tongue shot out unwillingly forward, the same time as Naveen’s did. They were probably aiming at the same insect, and now their tongues were….literally wrapped around each other, stuck mouth to mouth.

“Oh my,” Louis shyly responded while Goofy covered his eyes. 

“MMFF!!” Tiana stumbled up, wobbly on her feet as Naveen rose to his. The two struggled to separate, having a knot at the tip of their tongues. 

“Gef off!” Naveen struggled far more, waving his arms around.

“That looks like it hurts,” Donald plaintively pointed out.

“If does!” Naveen and Tiana announced.

Louis hurried over, and lifted the two up in his claws, “I think I got this!”

“Louis, be careful,” Aseles replied, but her suggestion was unheard, and she grimaced at the sight of Louis crossing and passing Tiana and Naveen over each other like some crazed, rubix cube puzzle. All Aseles could hear were the groans and cracks of bones.

“There!” Louis set them down on a nearby log, both frogs standing against each other’s backs. Their tongues were wrapped and snaked around one another, with a leg from each frog holding them up like a deformed, frightened scarecrow. 

“This could be a wittle betta,” Tiana spoke with her tongue pressed against the side of her mouth. Donald could only snicker at their misfortune while Goofy and Aseles looked over at Louis nervously.

“You know what this needs? A SHARP STICK!” Louis swiftly scampered off, disappearing into some bushes.

“Get us fwee before he comes bak!” Naveen pleaded.

“Just, hold still!” Aseles rushed to kneel before them, and picked them up gently in her palm. However, examining their state, she couldn’t see where the knot was. Louis indeed did a _good_ job, and last thing she wanted was to ensnare them further. “Wow, you guys are stuck good,” Aseles quirked her mouth. “I don’t think I can-“

“Ya doff think youff can?!” Tiana and Naveen both jumped on their upright legs, obviously taken aback of the discouraging news.

“Well, looks like you need a little help, eh chere?” Aseles swatted her free hand around swiftly, rubbing her ear right after from the slight buzz that accompanied it. She squinted her eyes, and saw a firefly….talking to her. What the actual f-

“Who are you??” Goofy wagged his tail from the arrival of the new companion. God, Aseles felt like she was a babysitter now. Not that she hated company, but she already thought Sora, Donald and Goofy were enough trouble as it was by themselves. However, the firefly bowed his head in respect, and ran his rounded fingers through his loose, redheaded locks. 

“My name Raymond, but friends call me Ray,” the little insect replied with a unique, charming enthusiasm. He eyed both Tiana and Naveen, his rounded rear reflecting off the slime that coated them. The insect hummed in thought, but let out a small chuckle afterwards after inspecting the predicament the duo was in. 

“You stuck real good there. Lemme see what I can do!” Ray parted one of their tongues to the side, and squeezed himself through the small opening of Naveen and Tiana’s tangled arms. Aseles, Donald and Goofy waited, tilting their heads while the tiny bulb of light radiated through the small gaps of knotted green and pink. After a few moments, Raymond was outside, grabbing one end of a tongue, and giving it a great heave upward. Naveen and Tiana instantly separated, Tiana falling limp on Aseles’ palm as Naveen fell off, landing on Goofy’s head.

“Thank you, my dear friend,” Naveen patted Goofy’s head after rolling his tongue back in his mouth properly, and looked toward the firefly, “Apologies, for trying to eat you earlier.”

“Huh, don’t seem like any of you are from around here, eh?” Ray circled the group, a heavy, thick accent bare on his tongue.

“Uh, not really,” Aseles admitted. The brunette placed Tiana on her shoulder after the frog was done wiping her continuous slime from her shoulders and arms. 

“We’re very far from around here,” Tiana added, more composed now.

“Whatcha mean by that?” Ray persisted, hovering in front of Aseles.

“You see, it’s a long story, but we’re trying to find this woman called…Mama Odie?” Aseles confronted, the others backing her up with a nod.

“Wait there, chere, Momma Odie?” Ray’s eyes sparked of recognition, “You be going the wrong way.” Wait…what?!

“The wrong way?” Donald quaked with Aseles facepalming herself. Great. They wasted their time getting this far.

“What kind of knucklehead told y’all to go this a-way?” Ray waved his hand to the side, then rested his fists on his narrow hips.

“I FOUND A STICK!” Aseles was too collected in her irritation to even jump from the surprise, with only Donald, Goofy and Raymond flailing from Loui’s abrupt arrival. He had barged through some tall reeds, indeed holding a very sharp stick in one clawed-hand. A huge grin spread across his face, but little did the alligator know he was in a whole new wave of problems.

Tiana was clearly unamused with Naveen, her hips slanted to one side with her arms crossed sternly on her chest, “Louis.” Louis started blankly of the sudden change of tone from the group. “Ray’s saying you’ve been taking us in the wrong direction…” The rest waited for the alligator’s reply, but none came…while he was still holding the stick in his triumphant manner.

After gripping the situation, Louis smiled nervously, dropping the stick and playing with his fingers. Aseles groaned in unison with Tiana and Naveen.

“Aaaaahhh,” Donald plopped onto Goofy’s back, rubbing his webbed feet with what he could with his wings. 

“Rule of the bayou: never take directions from an alligator,” Ray whispered. If only they had known that sooner.

“Well, we can’t waste time. Do you know where it is, Ray?” Aseles insisted. Her eyes shot to the horizon, where the last rays of the sun were disappearing. They had less than six hours to reverse the curse on her friends, and there was no way she was going to let that happen. 

Ray answered with a proud smile, “Well of course I do!” He suddenly whistled very loudly toward the large area of the lake bed, the area quiet and dark. The next instant, a wonderful glow of lights erupted, their surroundings automatically covered with hundreds of fireflies. Talk about a stroke of luck, Aseles didn’t think her Fire would last very long without their new guides.

“C’mon, we’ll lead you on the right way!” Ray zoomed forward, immersing himself into the dense crowd of small lanterns.

With the change of plans, Louis agreed to steer the group to the new trail. Aseles was last to mount onto Louis’ back, holding onto Goofy in front to steady herself while Donald rested on her shoulder, providing her neck some warmth from his feathers. She could only hope this Mama Odie could help them.

As their trek progressed, Aseles tried to keep her mind occupied with the beautifully lit scenery of the small, floating spheres of suns, but her thoughts continued to be grappled by the mere mention of Vanitas’ grin. The way it stretched and creased so smoothly without fault was more than a warning to signify that the guy had the worst intentions once he was set free, and she was positively astounded Sora had held him in for so long. 

Sora was a strong, hearted individual, but how long had he been keeping Vanitas inside of him was another question entirely. She never probed him for answers, mainly because she respected his privacy and personal matters; of course, now she understood _why_ Sora always used to do that. Everyone’s safety was in jeopardy with this Vanitas character, who seemed to have a deep tie with a dark part of Sora no one knew about. She wondered…she wondered if it was going to affect him in this…Mark of Mastery Yen Sid wanted them to commit to. Did Yen Sid know, could he have guessed something so sinister and dark was sleeping inside Sora? 

If Sora didn’t know….then who would’ve?

The group finally arrived to an opening of clear water, and a bank attached to an outstretching piece of land in the swamp. The fireflies dispersed after the group gave their thanks, and the insects all scattered to disappear into the night except for Ray who was sticking to the gang. The land was immersed in the shadows of the soggy, decaying trees, giving Aseles a harder time to watch where she was stepping. She grunted after having tripped on a tossed branch, and became more careful trekking forward with the group. She took the lead in front, with Tiana on her shoulder and Ray giving limited amount of light. Donald and Goofy were in the center, and Louis in the back with Naveen on his shoulder. A fog began to set in, Aseles shaking their head of the unfortunate luck. 

“Which way, Ray?” Tiana looked up at the firefly who was scavenging the place from memory.

“Thata way,” Ray replied with a lifted finger, and proceeded to hover himself over to the next area to follow.

“Do you think we’ll stay stuck like this if Mama Odie can’t fix it?” Goofy asked out loudly.

“I hope not. Daisy would be upset,” Donald sighed, slumping onto Goofy with wings dangling at the sides of dog’s head.

Aseles grumbled briefly, “She needs to, because I’m not dealing with Daisy screaming at me-“ The brunette halted in her stride, her head automatically picking up the dark vibes that were approaching. What the-

A piercing screeched rocked the bayou, the lake eerily still with the sound of rustling sheets picking up. Everyone immediately huddled with one another, Aseles flashing out her keyblade swiftly for combat. Louis quaked in the middle with Naveen and Tiana holding onto each other while kneeling onto Goofy’s back. Donald hurriedly clung onto Aseles’ neck, making her spit out the feathers that invaded her mouth. 

“Will you move?!” Aseles coughed out, resisting to swing around erratically. She managed to move Donald up with her free hand, but what she saw towering the group was far more than she had anticipated.

A slithering, grotesque shadow harbored itself onto the rough bark of a towering tree. It opened its jarred mouth, and let out an inhuman scream across the Bayou. 

“What is that!?” Tiana demanded furiously, but her question was left answered as Aseles whirled her head around, seeing the other trees surrounding the group were also occupied with a shadow. Suddenly, all the dark enemies motioned their gaping eyeholes in Goofy’s direction. Almost immediately, the group was left scrambling, with Goofy knocked back and Tiana clinging onto the dog’s back.

“Naveen!” Goofy and Tiana cried out, and Aseles watched Naveen holding onto a tossed log, the shadows all beginning to merge together to tug the frog’s shadow with them. Aseles leapt forward, rushing into a sprint and targeting the foes with a Thunder spell. The shadows screeched, Naveen flung forward from the tight pull. Aseles was quick to catch him in her arm, and she began to hurriedly regroup with the others.

“Run for it!” Aseles shouted, and Louis was by no means of asking twice. He fled in the lead, with Ray and Donald behind him. Goofy and Tiana began to give pursuit, with Tiana looking back and gesturing Aseles to hurry. Aseles shot her eyes back, wide at the sight of the approaching shadows. The keybearer gripping Naveen around his torso.

“Catch!” Aseles shouted to Tiana, and she tossed a flailing Naveen. The prince rolled across Goofy’s back, but Tiana was quick to grab him and haul him up beside her.

“Aseles, don’t!” Tiana shouted, but Aseles skidded to a stop, and she faced the oncoming enemies. They all halted against the tall trees, and eyed her dangerously.

“Want the frog, you’re going to have to go through me!” Aseles threatened, and the shadows retaliated to her remark. 

One shadow cut beneath Aseles, but she was too slow to strike it, and only kicked up water against her keyblade. She felt a slam on her left shoulder, and send a striking bolt against the water, catching one shadow and disarming it from the right side. Aseles regained ground, and spun her keyblade like a windmill, the thunder bolts rolling and cutting across the water in every direction she turned. The branches of the trees were caught in the crossfire, some falling and stomping onto the shadows that had gone too close to her perimeter. 

_”Trying to be the hero again?”_ Aseles shot her head around, trying to catch the location of the v- no, was it inside her head-

Aseles grunted loudly, feeling herself airborne and her back meeting against the shallow, darkened water. She groaned painfully, trying to lean herself up-

_”I thought we went over this already.”_

Aseles cried out, feeling the two shadows dig into her flesh. They pulled her back into the water, preventing her from flailing for her release. Her eyes shot up, but widened in horror of the main, elusive shadow that was the obvious ringleader of the group. It shot its grappling hook of a hand, and caught the nape of Aseles’ neck. 

“Haah-“ Aseles gasped, trying to swing her keyblade around as the tank of her oxygen began to deplete at an alarming rate. The tightness increased with the force of a thousand suns resting onto her chest. She glared up at the menacing creature, but try as she might to move her ankles and wrists, it only made matters worse. 

_”Give it up, Aseles. Then you’ll get what you want soon.”_

“Let………go….” Aseles mouthed out silently, her fingers trembling to keep their grip on her keyblade. 

_”That’s it, let go.”_

An orb of bright, yellow light blinded Aseles, and she had to squint to see the sphere catch the alarmed shadow dead center of its face. It turned to dark crisps and crumbs, and Aseles choked from the black smoke that rained onto her. Her body was released, and she fell onto the ground, exhausted but grateful for the sudden salvation. She slumped on the watery bank, her eyes adjusting from the sudden flare of light. A short, small shadow was approaching, but Aseles was unsure what it was approaching from the fog. 

“My, you one strong child,” rung a scruffy, aged voice. 

“Who are…?” Aseles mustered. A force of energy was beginning to tow her under, and Aseles found herself falling back, and into the arms of the darkness in her mind.

 

_”You just don’t learn….do you?”_

 

MOMENTS LATER:

She grunted slightly, feeling her back rolling against what felt like…wood. A wooden floor? She grunted as she sat up, smashing a hand against her face as she rubbed it vigorously. Her dark eyes squinted against the bright lanterns hung about the ceiling, giving the room a soft, golden glow. A towering figure was over her face, but no matter how many times she tried to blink, the harder it was to clarify her view.

“Don’t move…” the familiar tune of Tiana’s voice caressed Aseles’ face, and she felt a slimy hand pat her cheek.

“Open wide,” Naveen came next. Aseles, exhausted to argue, did as she was told, and a wooden spoon was laid on her bottom lip. The warm contents of something wonderful swam down her throat.

“Jeez…” Aseles rubbed her eyes with the buds of her palms, and finally she was able to see where she was. She appeared to be inside some sort of shack, a treehouse considering of the tall branches she was seeing from the open window across the room. The place was filled with hanging trinkets and masks of colored trades. There was dozens of shelves around, holding filled jars, bottles, woven bags, clothes, and a huge cauldron rested at the center. It smelled like someone was cooking. Aseles guessed that’s what she was served. 

“Feel better?” Tiana brushed Aseles’ bangs back, and the brunette nodded gently.

“A little….a bit drowsy,” Aseles coughed in her hand, and sat up from the laid blanket beneath her. She inspected Tiana and Naveen sharing a soft smile, which made the keybearer…somewhat curious of their sudden alliance. Were they both taking care of her?

“Aseles, you’re alright!” Abruptly, Aseles felt the rough lick of a tongue, and she groaned while wiping Goofy’s kiss on her cheek. 

“I keep forgetting you’re a dog,” Aseles mumbled, followed with a small chuckle. “Hey. How’s everyone else?”

“They’re alright, little lady. Don’t need to thank me.” Aseles looked up past Goofy to see a shorter, colored woman was directing her face downwards to Aseles’ direction. Her head was covered in a turban, and was adorned in the whitest clothes Aseles had ever seen. Her ancient fingers and low earlobes were adorned in beads and gold jewelry. The elder woman tapped her bracelet on her right wrist, as it signifying it was a watch.

“It’s about time you woke up, thought you was gonna be out for good!” the woman giggled sweetly, making Aseles raise an eyebrow of her odd demeanor. The keybearer recollected the feeling in her legs and feet, and stood with both Tiana and Naveen hoping off to land onto Louis’ shoulders. The gator waved with Ray, giving Aseles relief that indeed everyone was alright. Before she asked where Donald was, he was at the corner of the room, bundling himself up in what appeared to be gold coins. 

“What the heck is Donald doing?” Aseles thumbed.

“Oi, must have forgotten about the greedy chicken,” the elder woman snapped her fingers, and the coins were suddenly gone, erased from existence. This gained a disappointed sigh from Donald, who now got on his feet and kicked at the ground poorly. “Did you not learn your lesson from Mama Odie?” the woman pushed her bony fingers into clubs and rested them on her wide hips. Aseles lifted a finger, but even the woman was quick enough to catch Aseles’ presence, “What is it, child? Spit out out.”

“You…saved me,” Aseles stated rather than questioned. 

“You bet! Not a bad shot for a hundred-seventy-year-old blind lady,” she rang out chuckle. Aseles winced, rubbing the nape of her neck soothingly. Jeezes, even for shadows, they kicked her real good.

“Take it easy there, chere, you got a big bump on your head you did,” Ray shined his way into Aseles’ view, and she felt his puny hand give her a light pat of her temple.

“I’m glad everyone is alright,” Aseles pointed out, looking to Donald now who regrouped with everyone. “But, what were those things? In the Bayou? It looked like they were after Naveen.”

“Shadows, sent from the Shadow Man,” Mama Odie interrupted in, wagging her finger at Naveen. Wow, she knew where he was, and she was blind? That was pretty awesome. Well, not that she was blind….

Naveen sighed, throwing his arms up in defeat, “Yes, my fault.”

“Well…everyone’s alright,” Tiana encouraged with a smile, and patted the frog’s shoulder, “That’s all that matters.” Seriously, what happened while Aseles was knocked out?

She groaned and shook her head, but turned to Mama Odie, “Thank you for rescuing us. But…do you have another alternative to break this spell? Other than kissing a princess?” 

“I gotta say, Shadow Man don’t play games when it comes to his spells. This one is locked up tight, and there is no way around it,” the voodoo woman replied. Great. “However, little blondie of the town is throwing a Mardi Gras Parade, and she will be dressed as a princess.”

“Wait, does that count?” Aseles raised a brow, walking to the woman who lead the way to the cauldron. The smaller witch reached for her wooden spoon, and began to stir the contents of the soup around before taking a sip herself.

“Of course it does! What, want your friends to be animals forever?” Mama Odie insisted. Aseles quickly shook her head.

“Charlotte is going to marry Naveen, not the real one though,” Tiana added in, “I’m worried she’s going to be part of Dr. Facilier’s plot, so we have to hurry to New Orleans.”

“Er, right,” Aseles nodded, trying her best to merge in the new information with the old. “Then what are we- ugh….”

“Bad idea,” Mama Odie pushed her fingers against Aseles’ abdomen, making the taller female sit down in a nearby chair. There, she grabbed her head, feeling the horrible pulsing attempting to burst out of her forehead. Why did she have such a headache? Was it the lack of food, sleep, or…was it something else?

“Everyone have seconds while I attend the little hero here,” Mama Odie announced, and Tiana and Naveen began to serve the group second bowls of food. Aseles watched the elder woman scoop up a spoonful herself, but instead she walked over to Aseles, and handed her the cooked gumbo. 

“You got a lot of things swimming in that head of yours,” Mama Odie reached for a nearby staff, and she knocked the wooden orb at the top against Aseles’ head. She winced from the contact, but Mama Odie seemed to be inspecting her rather closely. Aseles hunched a bit, but backed up in surprise to see the elder lift the bowl back up, making Aseles sit up erect. 

“It’s like a puzzle, but you’re missing the pieces, girly,” Mama Odie shook her head, and began to examine Aseles beneath the dark glasses the woman was wearing. Despite being a blind woman, this woman was seeing what most others couldn’t. 

“Yeah…pretty much,” Aseles replied with a heavy exhale, and took a large gulp of the gumbo in her bowl. 

“In order to find the answers, all you have to do…is dig a little deeper, to find out who you are,” Mama Odie respectfully replied, making Aseles lift up her eyes to look at her. 

“I know that…” Aseles tried not to be defensive.

Mama Odie hummed in thought, and seemed to catch Aseles’ drift anyways, “But that’s not what makes your life special. It’s the small joys of it that make it all worthwhile in the end.” The staff in her hand gestured past her, and the older woman stepped aside to let Aseles inspect her group eating in merriment. She felt the edge of her mouth twitch, seeing Donald and Goofy enjoying their take with Louis nearly gobbling his meal down before going for a fourth. Ray and Tiana were getting into some sort of conversation about the gumbo, while Naveen politely listened, and smiled whenever Tiana did. 

“You see, you’re a reflection, like a mirror,” Mama Odie continued while Aseles held her bowl tightly in one hand, the other rubbing her knee. She looked over to see Mama Odie take a seat beside her, but Aseles’ eyes traveled back to the group, “If you show the good side, it reflects off onto everyone. If you show the darker side of you….”

“How do I know if I even have one?” Aseles slowly looked over to Mama Odie who was not breaking her gaze from the cauldron in front.

“It’s questions like that…that make you curious.” 

“What if….” Aseles blinked slowly, looking to the ground. She thought for a moment, then played her words, “What if I had one that was always inside me…but barely woke up?”

Mama Odie hummed, and her reply sent Aseles a horrible shiver down her arms, “Then you need to be strong to fight yourself.” 

 

Aseles hoped Sora was….alright.

 

SORA’S POV:

Grunting, he panted heavily as his eyes rolled in his lids, unable to focus on the common sense he had left. His defenses were beginning to wear down bit by bit, and there was nothing he could do to stop the Darkness from flowing inside his veins. It felt like some snake was slithering inside his flesh, and biting the venom into his bones. At the root of them, everything was on fire, and Sora could not extinguish it out. 

With weak stature, Sora picked up his head, eyeing the cruel, witch doctor who continued to throw an enchant into him. Sora could not keep this up much longer if he continued.

“You’re very persistent young boy, and I’m beginning to lose my patience. Accept your fate, and claim the Darkness that’s rightfully yours,” the doctor replied with a heavy, frustrated smirk. “You know you want it.”

“I won’t…hurt my friends!” Sora shook his head defiantly, his arms tightened behind him with his legs losing feeling of any motion. He felt it there, he could feel the fire had completely engulfed itself there. 

“Do you need more persuasion?” Dr. Facilier walked forward, and gripped onto the back of Sora’s head. Sora gritted his teeth, feeling the infliction at the base of his head. “What will it take to make you see that you are the main picture of the main plans? The root of all that could change the future?”

“Vanitas will not control me!” Sora shouted, glaring at the manipulative man. 

“But see here, dear boy,” the witch doctor slapped his hand onto Sora’s back, “It is not your choice. It’s Master Xehanort’s.”

Sora immediately shot his eyes up, “W-What did you say?” 

“A man who has lived far longer than any keybearer in the worlds, you didn’t think the word was going to get around?” Dr. Facilier chuckled, tapping his foot against the ground in rhythm, “Didn’t think I hesitated to turn in this town? Knew you were going to come along, just didn’t know how long. But you came in, like a puppet to its strings, and waltz right into my wicked dreams. Knew you were going to come along, and I knew you were going to be strong.”

“AHH!” Sora hunched forward, feeling the doctor’s hand slam into Sora’s chest, the dark waves and curtains beginning to seep inside. The blue sky orbs began to flicker, until finally, a poison of gold was beginning to sweep and swirl around the pupils of the eyes. 

“Had to weaken your walls, had to make you fall, because I know-knew Vanitas would answer the call.”

ASELES’ POV:

Hiding behind some bushes and reeds, the ferry Louis mentioned began to glide in a respectable distance, and Aseles was quite glad she felt a bit more herself after leaving Mama Odie’s place. People seemed to already be in celebration of the Mardi Gras party that was going to take place. Why not hitch a ride to get there faster?

“Louis, you sure this is safe?” Naveen questioned. 

“You bet! We just gotta blend in,” Louis nodded with a grin. Of course…says the alligator.

Creeping through the surface, Louis began to make his way through the murky water, and slid to the side of the ferry. Aseles stood up on his back first, and hauled herself up. Gripping onto the white bars of the large boat, Aseles rolled herself onto the wooden floor. She kneeled, and pushed her upper body into the gap hole of the lowest bar. She stretched out her hands, and caught Naveen and Tiana leaping. She let them leap over her back, and this time Asees reached for Goofy’s paws. With some difficulty, she was able to haul the hound over, but grunted when he landed right on top of her back. 

“UGH! Kinda…heavy, Goof,” Aseles slumped, feeling her face squish against the cold wood.

“Sorry,” Goofy quickly got off, letting Aseles stand up, and crack her back. At least she didn’t have to tug Donald over; he already flew over, and waddled beside Goofy to shake out the water out of his feathers. 

Finally, with some hesitation Aseles leaned over the top bar of the ferry, and gripped onto Louis’ clawed hands. Once Aseles was sure he wasn’t going to impale her hands, she began to pull roughly. With Goofy tugging the bottom of Aseles’ dress back, the two managed to successfully heave Louis up on board, with Aseles trying to gasp for air. Louis patted Aseles’ back in appreciation. 

“Much obliged,” he grinned and spun his trumpet in his claws. 

“Uh huh, don’t mention it,” Aseles cracked her back once more, but gazed around to make sure no one had noticed their intervention. She walked forward to peek around the corner, but the people on the ferry seemed too preoccupied with conversation. Everyone seemed to be adorned in costumes, ready for the Mardi Gras celebration. 

“Hey, someone’s coming!” Donald flapped his wings, but what Aseles didn’t expect was for Louis to automatically coat himself against Aseles’ back, and boxing himself in with the length of his tail. 

“Jeez!” Aseles flailed to keep herself upright, but froze when she saw the dressed jazz players of the ferry in front of her. “Oh……h-hi.”

“Hey there little lady. Nice costume, brother!” the saxophone player reached, and poked at Louis’ scales. Aseles’ face lit up, and she hurriedly stood up straight, clearing her throat to grab the men’s attention.

“You got a trumpet player?” Aseles scanned the group with a smile.

“Actually, no,” the leader of the ring commented, fixing his animal costume around his face. “You play??”

“No, but he does,” Aseles thumbed, stepping aside for the jazz players to look at Louis properly. Defensively, Louis began to play his trumpet well, making the jazz players look at one another with accepting grins. 

“C’mon, why don’t you play with us?” the cello man cut in enthusiastically. Louis automatically nodded, and he gave Aseles a rough, tight squeeze before hurrying over. 

“See you later, Louis!” Aseles chuckled, giving a small wave. 

“He’s finally going to play with the big boys!” Ray squealed in delight after flying out of the nearby barrel the others had dived in.

“Yeah, we owed him that at least. He doesn’t need to be human to show them what he’s got,” Aseles smirked, crossing her arms. 

“Now we wait,” Donald exhaled. 

Aseles’ smile dropped, but she nodded nonetheless, “Now we wait.”

With the moon now on the arrival in the sky, the town of New Orleans shouldn’t be far off, not unless the ferry wanted to be fashionably late. Aseles patiently waited at the edge of ferry’s stern, her legs dangling over the edge with her folded arms occupying her chin. Her eyes glazed to the water running underneath the ferry, her legs slightly swinging in anticipation of what they would find once they landed. She didn’t even have a plan of action once they did. But…she had to find Sora, and maybe he was still with that Shadow Man though she hoped otherwise. She hoped he had managed to escape, and was looking for them in town. 

Goofy laid his chin in Aseles’ lap, and Donald sat beside Aseles, huddling against her hip. Tiana and Naveen had set their sights somewhere else, and Aseles was sure that Ray was encouraging Louis on the stage. The jazz music flowed naturally into the air, and Aseles could not help but tap the front of her boots together in unison of the beat as a way of distracting her battling thoughts. The gator had the entire ferry roaring for his music. 

“At least one of us is having fun, right?” Aseles quirked her mouth, scratching the top of Goofy’s head.

“We’ll be soon too, once we find Sora,” Goofy added happily. 

“Yeah, he’s gonna be okay,” Donald sighed, laying his head against Aseles’ thigh. “Think he’s still in the Emporium?” 

“It would be worth checking,” Aseles nodded. “He knows how to take care of himself.” 

“Have you seen Naveen?” Aseles looked over, watching Tiana walking over to the them. 

“Wasn’t he with you?” Donald replied, arching a brow to her. 

“Uh, no,” Tiana shook her head, but Aseles saw the small hint of a blush. 

“Say, why don’t you go find him then?” Aseles quirked a small grin, rubbing her chin in thought, “I bet he’s looking for you too.”

“What? What makes you say that?” Tiana defended, rubbing her arm. 

“Looks like you to are great friends,” Goofy added to the statement, making Tiana blush that further.

“Why are you saying that? I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Tiana crossed her arms, looking to the side. 

“Well…it’s kinda obvious, don’t you think so?” Aseles giggled softly, catching Tiana staring at her in defiance. Before the cook could counter, Ray’s shining bulb of a body shot in between, and held a delight, excited Ray clapping his hands. 

“Tiana, ol’ prince wants to talk to you, chere. He’s at top.” Tiana looked past Ray, seeing Aseles, Donald and Goofy all giving her a smug, grinning look. 

“Me? Why me?” Tiana interjected, clearing her throat to ease her blush. 

“I don’t know. He says it’s a surprise,” Ray smiled widely, and gestured his hands forward, “Go, chere, go!” Tiana stumbled her way back, but began to quickly climb herself up, with the trio still chuckling at her reaction. 

“So, what did Naveen want?” Donald leaned toward Ray, nudging the firefly’s tiny shoulder.

“Oh no! I won’t speak a word, nothing will come out of me!” Ray quickly replied. The trio waited, and it was literally a second later that Ray’s erupting jubilation could not be contained, “Prince is going to ask Tiana to marry him! That’s what he’s gonna do! He’s gonna get a job, two jobs for her restaurant-!” He slapped his hands to his mouth, but the secret was already plain in Aseles’ mind. His attitude toward Tiana completely shifted.

“Heh, that’s cute,” Aseles laughed lightly.

“I knew those two were gonna end up together,” Donald smirked.

“Is it a love thing to just know it?” Aseles playfully asked, poking the back of Donald’s head. He swatted a wing to her, making her and Goofy laugh. 

“Yes! And they’re both going to be so happy!” Ray squealed. “Look, we’re almost in town!” The group stood from their post, and Aseles looked to the lit, New Orleans in the distance. A fog had settled around the perimeter of the swamp, but the waters glittered and twinkled from the golden lights blooming from the town’s edge. 

“Hey, be right back,” Aseles announced, leaving Ray with Donald and Goofy by the firefly. Aseles rounded the corner, and pressed her hands to cup her eyes against the glass. Inside the ferry compartment, she tried to find some sort of clock to give her an estimation of how much time they had left. Once she located a nearby clock however, she inhaled sharply. They only had about an hour and thirty minutes until midnight. 

“Millions of people around the world would be coming to the restaurant, just to get a taste of our food.” Wait, where was….Tiana?

“OUR food?” Naveen questioned. Aseles looked around, and saw two, green legs hung over the edge of the ferry’s roof. She tilted her head, but carefully climbed her way up on a nearby ladder, blinking gently to their direction.

“Oh, no no-I mean my daddy’s food and mine. My daddy always wanted to open a restaurant to call our own, but he died before it could happen. With your help, Naveen, you can make that dream come true once you marry Charlotte. If I don’t have the money first thing by tomorrow…I lose the place,” Tiana finished. The tone of their secret arrangement sounded like it hit a low note. Oh, Aseles was eavesdropping at the wrong time.

“Tiana…I love,” Naveen sighed, but Aseles waited, feeling her teeth grind lightly against each other. “I love the way you talk about your…dreams,” he stated. “I’ll do whatever it takes to get your restaurant… I promise.” Oh……

Aseles looked up, seeing Naveen’s legs had disappeared, indicating he had stood up. Aseles began to quietly climb her way down, but once she got to the deck, she almost gasped from the sight of Donald jabbing a wing up in her direction.

“Aseles, what are you-“ 

“SHH!” Aseles shot her hand to clamp the duck’s bill closed. Goofy looked utterly confused, but once he saw Naveen with Donald-

“Were you eavesdropping?” Donald mumbled irately, smacking Aseles’ leg with his wing. 

“Hey, now is not the time to lecture-“ 

“Get off me!” Naveen’s voice cut into the scolding. The three hurriedly looked up, seeing Naveen’s feet were clutched by a dark formation. No, the shadow! The prince was no match in strength, and he was dragged rapidly across the air, over the heads of the people beginning to dock onto the pier. 

“Come on!” Aseles commanded as she made chase, nearly ramming into the pedestrians of the town as they began to board off the ferry. Donald and Goofy followed right behind, with Donald taking the closer lead to Aseles. Winded of the sharp turns she had to make, she could only follow with the sound of Naveen’s cries, knowing full well that the incongruous shadow was pulling him further into the obscurity of the town.

“It’s getting away!” Aseles gasped out hoarsely, gripping onto her side of the extreme turmoil her body was enduring. She had lost visual, and Naveen’s cries for help had fallen silent. 

“This way!” Donald soared overhead, and Aseles was right on his tail. Then, it was there that the duck as leading her into the entry of an alleyway. The entire street she was on was deserted, and Aseles wasn’t too keen on heading inside the dark abyss of the pathway. Yet, the figure of a lean person was waiting at the end of it, the fog having creeped around  
his feet. The man’s violet eyes gleamed in the dark night, and in his right palm was the squirming prince, trying to free himself of the witch doctor’s clutches. 

“Let Naveen go!” Aseles shouted, flashing out her keyblade as Donald and Goofy pressed behind her. The female was undaunted, or tried to be as she raised her keyblade toward the Dr. Facilier, “And turn my friends back!” 

“My, my, what a surprise we have. Little lady, I would think twice about raising that keyblade on me,” the man replied, bowing his head a bit. 

Aseles’ eyes widened, but she narrowed them back down, her eyebrows furrowed, “How do you know about the keyblade??”

“You’re not the only one whose traveled far and wide to get what you want,” Dr. Facilier continued, his toothy grin flashy in the dark alleyway. “Now, isn’t that something you would want?” The man suddenly waved his arm around, and the entire, dimmed alleyway lit up from the bright figure in the middle of their stalemate. Aseles’ blinked rapidly to push the bright smoke that engulfed her view, but once she stared at the figure in front of her, she stopped dead on her tracks. 

In plain view was a man in red robes, and his red eyes glazing along Aseles’ face. She felt the sickening dryness in her throat, and she felt her legs tremble in place. She shook her head to and fro, and felt the gloved palm reach to cup her cheek. Ansem’s hand. 

“I can tell you everything,” Ansem spoke out. It felt like something out of a dream, a horrible, irresistible desire to reply back. She was tempted, tempted to fall on her knees and hug this man’s legs. To never let him go. 

“If you give me what I want, I can give you all the memories you have lost,” the witch doctor’s voice glided through the air like silk, and how it ensnared and sunk into Aseles’ eardrums. Everything seemed so muffled and dim, compared to the sharpened view of Ansem in front of her. It had been so long since she had seen him, or seen…an exact replica of him- 

“Aseles!” She felt the nudge behind her leg, and the keybearer quickly shook her head, and glared at the impersonated man in front. She gritted her teeth, and gripped the side of her head, digging her digits into her locks. No, this wasn’t real, this wasn’t real-

“Let Naveen go, and let Sora go,” Aseles shakily commanded out, trying her to best to look past the elder man in front of her. Ansem’s figure began to dissolve, and again Aseles was brought back to the dark alleyway beside Dr. Facilier’s Emporium. A deep loss of feeling rung true in the deepest parts of Aseles’ stomach, and she tried her best to not cry.

“If that’s what you want, that’s exactly you’ll get,” Dr. Facilier raised a cunning brow, and lifted his hand up. Dr. Facilier moved himself back into a shadows, but Aseles felt a nauseating vibe radiate from the man’s presence. Just when Aseles thought nothing would happen-

“Behind you!” Naveen called out, but his next shout was blocked by the witch doctor’s palm. 

“Aseles…” Donald suddenly nudged Aseles’ leg. Aseles turned around, but what she saw at the end of the alleyway was nothing short of her living nightmare.

A pair of yellow, piercing eyes illuminated from the street, and in a quick swoop of agile feet, the possessed Sora was now blocking the exit. 

“I’ll be sure to leave you all in privacy. I have other matters to attend to,” Mr. Facilier jeered again, and began to walk backwards into the emerging, dark portal while gripping the writhing Naveen. Once the two departed, Aseles quickly turned her attention around, but was too slow to catch the menacing blow of Sora’s clawed palm. She found herself flying backwards, and she hit the ground hard, grunting and wincing from the throbbing poundings in her head. Swiftly, Aseles got to her feet, seeing Donald and Goofy had been tossed to the sides, giving entryway for the sinister Sora who locked eyes with Aseles. 

“Hey….Sora,” Aseles raised her arm up, gulping roughly of the parched pennies lodged on her tongue. She felt her arm tightened, her knuckles turning lighter from the tight fist around her keyblade. With much precaution, she opened her lips and tried again, “S-Sora!” 

The possessed male stood straight, and he lifted his hand up, stretching out his clawed fingers before cracking his knuckles, “Would you like to leave a message?” Aseles’ eyes grew wide as the dark concealment on Sora’s face began to pull down. The golden orbs sank into Aseles’ pupils, and she felt the rough shock drive through her bones.

Vanitas’ face smirked viciously, “Sora’s not on the line right now.”


	10. Corrupted

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Instead of writing 17 pages for my project, I wrote 17 pages for this chapter.
> 
> Whooooooooo. Priorities. 
> 
> Alright kiddos, here's the second chapter for the month. I don't believe I will be able to take another chapter out, considering I let my "priorities" get the better of me. I'm sort of-kind of-maybe-perhaps behind on my project sooooo yeaaaaaaaah. Don't be like me.
> 
> THAT'S THE LESSON HERE KIDS.
> 
> Oh, and to never trust Vanitas. That's the other lesson here. Whoops.  
> You done goofed up, Sora.
> 
> Sincerely,
> 
> Keys

The area was swelling, like an inflated, humid balloon swallowing the walls, the ground, the air and the sky. A dark rush of air sank and infected Aseles around her face, making her ears ping and withhold the horrid static she was feeling in her chest. She was ultimately unsure what to say, or gather some intellectual form of a word to describe the situation she was in right now. Yet, one thing was certain: Sora’s dilemma of Vanitas had once again made an appearance…and Aseles was not too excited about it.

She was now indefinitely and sound to say she was afraid of this dark-haired clone.

His white smear of teeth glowed in the darkness of the alleyway, but even that alone was enough to tear Aseles’ defensive walls; her guard plummeted to mere shambles and pebbles, and she was at the brink of only being able to fight with a broken sword in hand while Vanitas himself held and aimed a cannon at her. She knew he was not going to miss.

“What the hell do you want, Vanitas?” Aseles demanded angrily while trying to coat her trembling figure.

“I missed you too, Aseles,” Vanitas chuckled out, and took a step forward. When he did, a fire of Darkness sprang up from his step, and his bangs lightly fluttered from the brief breeze. Aseles looked behind him to see Donald and Goofy were regaining consciousness, but they were held behind a barrier; Aseles was trapped inside with Vanitas. Last time she checked, it didn’t end well last time.

“What, you thought I wasn’t going to come back?” Vanitas gestured his arms open, leathered in an ebony layer of pulsing Darkness. His fingers curled and extended, and Aseles felt herself cringe from the way his nailed claws clinked and tapped against each other. No, this couldn’t be. This _could not_ be.

Yes, exactly. That’s exactly what Aseles thought. She knew Vanitas- she _wanted_ Vanitas to never come back. No. She was so wrong; she should’ve told Leon, she should’ve mentioned it to Riku at least. Crap, Axel was right…

Aseles gritted her teeth, and pushed her keyblade in front of her offensively, “I don’t know what it is your planning, but it ends now! I defeated you before, and I’ll do it again!” She charged forward, and took a swing. Her gasp rang out, as she saw Vanitas’ clawed hand grip onto the head of her keyblade, and his darkened face loom over her. As if it were a mere branch, he began to easily push the weapon aside, exposing Aseles in his frontal view.

“Is that so?” Aseles body was swatted to the side, and she hit against the brick wall, hard enough to make her brain rocket around in her skull. She fell with a thud, and she groaned while gripping the handle of her keyblade.

“Aseles!” Donald shouted out, his wings slapping against the barrier holding him and Goofy back.

“Sora!” Goofy called out next, but the futile attempt only made Vanitas chuckle who walked to Aseles’ body. He reached down, and began to haul Aseles up by her upper, left arm but was greeted with the head of her keyblade at his chest.

“Thunder!” The magic spell electrified Vanitas’ entire structure, making the male stagger back and emit an angry snarl from his tight lips. Aseles hurriedly backed up, her eyes sharpened to Vanitas’ view, attempting to make note of any upper-hand she might have against him.

“Stupid girl.” Aseles’ eyes scattered to and fro, but shut the next second. Her body was tossed airborne, the sharp flick of pain grazing her chest. Aseles struggled to maintain to have her body in sync with Vanitas’ shooting attacks across the walls. She blocked and swung, blocked and swung, hit and blocked; her body was being directly pushed upwards the further the fight progressed. Her breaths went quick and shallow, but she refused to cave into the constant shredding of her arms and back.

“FIRE!” Aseles shot her keyblade down, and a typhoon of fire began to inflame the entire section of the back alley. Vanitas was quick to shift his direction to the side, and began to crawl and lunge himself diagonally across the brick walls to keep himself safe from the rising flames. Aseles’ fire gave out, and she skid the bottom of her feet against the brick wall adjacent to Dr. Facilier’s building. The head of her keyblade sparked hot flashes against the building to slow her down, but what she didn’t anticipate was Vanitas running up along the wall…heading straight up to her.

“No you don’t!” Aseles struck her keyblade downward, but Vanitas’ figure suddenly smeared. She had missed.

“Too slow.” Aseles cried out painfully, Vanitas’ foot kicking against her stomach, and planting her back against the brick wall. Her body slumped over, and she felt herself falling until she felt a claw snag and dig into her ankle. Her mind immediately registered the danger, and she flailed her second foot up, trying to kick Vanitas off; the male did not budge, and began to climb up the wall like an agile spider, and dragging her along. Aseles screamed, trying to strike Vanitas. The next moment he flung her like a doll, and tossed her into the air.

Aseles’ body met nothing but heavy blows of sharp claws, her body beginning to lift again but staying painfully in the same place. Her scream was interrupted by the sharp inhale of breath, and she could not recuperate her lungs once the shredding motion began to ensue. No limb of her body was safe, and the freedom was only brief until she felt the last kick delivered to her abdomen like a ton of bricks.

Aseles’ mouth opened, a string of wet liquid escaping into the air. Her body collided to the floor with a lift of dark smoke, and she remained still with the tears of agony rolling down her cheeks. Her teeth bore to the sky, and finally her lungs were unstuck to let her breath. She trembled from the force on her back, and shifted her eyes to the side to catch the unexpected sight of Donald and Goofy.

“Aseles, get up!” Donald encouraged ruthlessly, pointing to the figure past her. Aseles grunted lowly, and began to drag her body across the ground, reaching her hand out toward her friends. However, a sharp cry escaped her lips, and she gritted her teeth at the sight of a flailing Donald and Goofy.

“Now, let’s see here,” Vanitas cooed from behind. Aseles dug her nails into the ground, but it did not prevent her from being lifted from the back of her dress. Her body was turned, the tight-clawed hand of the Anti-Sora holding her up. Her head rolled on her shoulders, and looked into the shimmering, panther eyes of Vanitas. She whimpered as she felt the second palm wrap around her neck. Her fingers twitched, her right palm already having difficulty holding onto her keyblade. She felt the entire portion of her back swelled, along with the burning sensation of her legs and arms.

“Have I finally broken you in, or do you still intend to fight me, Aseles?” Aseles croaked out weakly, gaining a small chuckle from Vanitas. “No matter how many times you want to save him, you will never stand a chance against us, Aseles. How hard is it for you to see?”

The grip on her throat lessened, making Aseles exhale out sharply, “I-I will always fight you…I will always-fight t-the Darkness…”

“Even if it’s inside of you?” Vanitas leaned, pressing his burning cheek against hers. His words tenderly floated across the air, and rang dangerously close to Aseles’ ear, “How much more can you stand?”

_“Don’t give up.”_

“T-Terra….” Aseles exhaled out. A sudden force of fire began to ignite inside Aseles’ core, and she felt herself gasp from the rush that was delivered across her arms.

Vanitas’ eyes narrowed fiercely, and he backed up his face to glare at Aseles, “What?”

_“Save yourself, Aseles. Save yourself!”_

“I will….” Aseles mouthed out, and felt her hand being elevated as if someone were helping her.

“How do you know Terra?” Vanitas demanded, curling Aseles’ form into him, shaking her roughly. With the newfound strength that was brewing inside of her, Aseles shot her keyblade across viciously, causing Vanitas to let go and stand back. Aseles’s breath rung lowly on her parted lips, and she lifted her right hand. Her eyes shot to it, and she saw a blue, glimmering arc at the front of her keyblade. Her right hand was left empty, but the keyblade was attached to the outer portion of her arm, like a curved shield.

“You pathetic girl!” Vanitas threatened, but Aseles effectively blocked Vanitas’ attack, stopping dead center of her keyblade’s newly-formed guard. Her hand turned into a fist, and her left plummeted forward with brimming, scorching knuckles. Vanitas dodged, but Aseles quickly rotated her body in a full circle, and sent Vanitas flying with a high-speed kick that even she grew astounded of; the amount of force felt like a metal pipe. The male hit against the far wall, but his claws dug into the wall with vengeance. His face shot up with a glower to Aseles’ intense and illuminating azure eyes. She narrowed her threatening orbs, and readied her stance with a glower.

“Think every time you get a new power, you can defeat me?!” Vanitas shouted angrily, and he shot like a bullet across…but not fast enough.

“I will!” Aseles defied loudly. Vanitas oncoming sharp attacks were all deflected, Aseles abusing this profound energy to its full potential. She ducked and slid across the ground, her body holding strength as powerful as a Nobody Berserker alone. Her keyblade continued to shield and defend against Vanitas’ slaying, offensive blows, but the golden-eyed male was growing bothered of Aseles’ increasing agility. Aseles’ arms were suddenly tossed open, and Vanitas shot himself full front. His claws dug into Aseles’ shoulders, but he was left unguarded as Aseles rolled him over her, and she was left on top of him.

She slammed her shield against his chest, making him vulnerable for a second. She immediately shot up, and plunged her boot against his abdomen. Vanitas growled angrily, and attempted to pounce and knock Aseles off her feet. However, she interrupted with another slam to his lower body, making the male bolt in place.

“You little-AGH!” Aseles cut Vanitas off with her palm plummeting to his chest, and sunk her fingers into his flesh. His entire interior quaked, making Vanitas groan from the powerful hit.

_“Save him, Aseles! Do it!”_

Aseles’ left arm was coated in bright Light, and began to rain down her arm to forcefully sink into Vanitas’ black exterior of armor. In the fraction of a second, Vanitas’ golden eyes shut to reveal blue, oceanic eyes; the reverted Sora was now gasping in place.

Aseles body began to dim once the entire Light in her possession was depleted, and she staggered back to give Sora room. Her keyblade clattered to the ground, but dispersed in fragments of light the next second. She succumb to her knees, and felt her body fall over from the pure exhaustion. The barrier that once held Donald and Goofy was gone, and Aseles felt Donald’s wings grip her face.

“Aseles, Aseles, open your eyes!” Donald cried out, but even that proved a difficult job for her. The energy she once had was finally gone, and the entire consequences of her fight with Vanitas were now raining on her tenfold.

“Aseles!” Sora’s voice coughed out hoarsely, and she felt her upper body cradled in a pair of arms. She winced and shook greatly, shuddering from feeling Goofy push his face into her hair.

“Potion, anything!” Donald ordered angrily to Sora. The brunette nodded immediately, fumbling with his jacket and pockets, “Crap. Aseles, I’m so sorry-“ The clatter of glass bottles screeched into Aseles’ ears, and she curled up to stop all noise and sound. Everything was too loud, too close and too far apart. Something…something was inside of her.

_“We’ve hit a problem, haven’t we?”_

_“No, don’t! Do not do this! Do not deter the order!”_

“This is my fault. It’s all my fault!” Her neck was craned back, and the familiar liquid of simmering water began to crawl and sink into Aseles’ opened mouth. She coughed from how quickly she had gulped it, and she found herself laid on her side with Sora’s palm soothing her back.

“Aseles, I’m so sorry,” Sora bowed from above her, his arms gripping her waist tightly.

_“What did I say, Aseles?”_

“G-Go!” Aseles croaked, feeling her hand hit against Sora’s leg. The brunette froze, but Aseles did not falter in her speech, “Facilier….go!”

“No, I won’t leave-“ Sora started, but Aseles angrily replied.

“GO! Donald and Goofy! GO!” Aseles commanded once more, feeling her chest heaving. She tried to draw in slow, relaxed breaths, but it seemed impossible from this point on. Everything was turning cold, and her lungs began to draw in irregular withdrawals of air. Sora had to go save their friends. Vanitas might come back if they didn’t defeat Facilier before midnight.

“Hurry!” Aseles motioned her face to the duck, and was met with his sight. Donald hesitated, but he nodded quickly and took flight to hover over Sora.

“Sora, we have to go!” Donald tucked his webbed feet into Sora’s hood, and tried to pull him up.

“No, we can’t leave her!” Sora fought again, but Aseles shook her head, catching the keybearer’s attention.

_“Do not interfere! It will cause great imbalance!”_

_“Oh dear, oh dear. What am I going to do?”_

_“Aseles, you have to move!”_

_“I don’t think so.”_

“Go, Sora. GO!”

“I’ll stay with Aseles,” Goofy insisted, now knowing the plight of their emergency. He tucked himself against Aseles’ front, resting the top of his head against Aseles’ throat. Her eyes flickered to stay open, and when she gazed up to Sora, she tried her best to not cry from the absolute pain he had brought upon her moments before.

“Go….Sora.” The brunette paused a beat, but he nodded.

“We’ll be back!” Sora alerted swiftly, and Aseles watched his feet race from her view once he turned around the corner of the alleyway, Donald in hot pursuit behind him. Once they were gone, the tears finally spilled over Aseles’ cheeks, and she cried softly to herself of the predicament she was now in. Everything hurt….everything hurt so much.

“Stay awake, Aseles,” Goofy encouraged beneath her, and she felt his paw constantly fidget and lightly push against her abdomen. But, try as she might, Aseles began to feel the heavy burden of her eyes, and couldn’t help but feel something was watching her.

_“Leave well enough alone! There will be a grave consequence!”_

……………

“Don’t look so good, do you?”

……………..

_“You must get up!”_

The sound of Goofy’s barking jolted Aseles in place, and she felt empty, colder alone on the dry, damp floor. Her eyes lifted to look up the pathway of the alley. Her eyes had trouble to stay awake, but she could not find it within herself to get up when she saw Goofy’s body slumped two yards away. A dark, ambiguous figure stood in front of him, and began to go around the hound.

_“I beg of you…You must walk away. You must do what is right!”_

The sound of footsteps drew closer, and Aseles tried her best to shout, or lift her arm. The shadow of the figure loomed over her, and what frightened her more was that the voice of the person…sounded much like the person in her head. It wasn’t Terra…it wasn’t the cloaked male from Radiant Garden…was he the one that was warning her to get up?

This person in front of her….was someone she didn’t know.

“You should really give up soon, Aseles.”

_“Desist! You cannot-!”_

The cold fingertips lifted Aseles’ jaw up, and she cringed from the strain on her neck and shoulders.

_“No! Don’t!”_

“No, you don’t look good at all.” Aseles shuddered visibly, and tried to pull her face back from the digits that pressed against the front of her forehead. She felt something sinking into her mind, and it was increasing the numbness she felt overall.

“I changed my mind: I think you need to at least remember one damn thing.” Aseles moaned painfully, her ankles and wrists clamped against each other with invisible, chained locks. A cold chill snaked its way around her thoughts, and there she felt the rough pulsations of slumber. No, did this person drug her? Who was-

“So, how about it, Aseles?

 

                                                                Instead of breaking you,

  
                                                                                                                          

 

                                                                                                              why don’t we….make you?”

 

_“Don’t you like your brothers?”_

_“I suppose…”_

_“Why do you say that?”_

_“I don’t know…sometimes they’re just bossy, or they think they’re always right…”_

_“OH…”_

_“Yeah, but anyways, have you been living long here?”_

_“Hmm…since I was born! Hey, want to head to my secret hideout?”_

_“You have a secret hideout?”_

_“Well…no, but it’s pretty! C’mon!”_

 

Children gripping hands, as if it were their last day together. How cheesy, right?

_“Where are we going?”_

_“You’ll see.”_

_“You know I hate surprises.”_

_“Aw…you do?”_

_“Well…no. But you won’t tell me where we’re going.”_

_“Heheh, you’re funny. It’s really pretty.”_

_“…So are we there yet?”_

_“Almost!”_

 

Yeah, I know. It’s so damn cheesy. But you liked adventure too much to even care.

_“You know I would protect you…”_

_“You don’t have to. You’re already my best friend.”_

_“You don’t know what might happen. Don’t you think we should always be friends? Be together?”_

_“You would do that?!”_

_“Here, look-“_

 

Yeah…Prince Charming for you, am I right? No..you were already a Prince Charming. I guess we were soldiers who felt something, together.

  
_His eyes, his hazel eyes, peering and fading into the light of the air, to be consumed and forever glitter before her face, on her skin, inside her own orbs; the magic they held was cosmic and dimensional, where they held strong will, and tenderness…though…there was a venom in them, something hidden and descending from the pits of the darkening sky. He looked up, then back down at her as if she were at his feet-_

_-his young, pure face began to crease and lengthened, resulting the face of a young teen, one whose seen many faults and burdens…but still held that sense of righteousness and adventure…from so long ago-_

Interrupting my flow, are you? I need to get rid of you then.

_Don’t do this. If you do, you will dismember everything in her. She will be the sacrifice of your actions._

Yeah, I know that already-

 

                     ASELES, LISTEN TO ME-           NO-    LAST ATTEMPT-

100101LogOff Memory_SHUTDOWN

REBOOT_DENIED 1001010010001011101000  
EXIT_FORCED

                              Private Function ExitMEMORY _ 10101111000100100"ExitMemoryEx"                                                                                       FORCED_FORCED_FINALATTEMPT10010001000010000011111110001000

                                                                        ASELES_CAN_YOU_HEAR_MEEEEeeeeeeee-

  
  
_“Terra?” Up ahead sat the tall brunette on the usual, pale-colored bench. His neck was craned back, and his eyes looked up to the sky. Aseles’ eyes widened, seeing that the bottom exterior of the grassy land they were perched on was…slightly pixelated, erasing, dissolving into grains of sand. Aseles hurried her way over, afraid she would be plummeted to some dark abyss below. She lost footing, and gripped onto Terra’s shoulder to prevent from falling. However, what she met was nothing, and found herself slip right through the man’s legs and knees. She grunted while lifting herself from the ground, eyes widened as she reached to touch Terra. No, her fingers merely phased through him…and she did not know why._

_The older man lifted his eyes leisurely, a brooding, darkened expression of sadness planted on his face. Aseles withdrew her hand, taking a step back. Her eyes never left his sight; it was as if he were some cold corpse, who was already in the first steps of death._

_“Terra?”_

_“My con-nection to you has been corrupt-corrupted,” Terra replied, his voice holding severe cuts of increased and decreased volume. He sounded like a dying program, or a malfunctioning computer._

_“Connection?” Aseles insisted, trying her best to stay calm, afraid she’ll wake up too soon._

_“I-I-I-warned him-bout doing this,” Terra continued. Aseles felt her legs tense, but she gasped when she caught sight of the floor beneath Terra now dissolving. His fingers that rested on his knees began to pixelate out of view, and his exterior began to shift in such brief moments, he was inhuman to her. “He will corrupt him-him-self-self too.”_

_“What will happen to you??” Aseles swiftly asked, already fearing of Terra’s departure._

_“I w-w-w-will try to talk to you ag-g-g-gain- don’t know how-” Terra voiced out. His eyes lifted, “D-Do not seek what you ha-ha- forgotten….find your fu-fu-fu-ture. Yen-Sid.”_

_“Y-Yen Sid?? What about him?” Aseles urgently interrogated, wanting to grip Terra’s shoulders. Her fingers curled roughly._

_“Mas-Mas-Master Eraqus-Eraqus-Eraqus-EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEERAQUS. You are…..the key……Ase-les. Lis-Lis-Lis-Lisssssssssssssssssssssssten. Do-not-stray.”_

_“Terra, no, TERRA!” Aseles snapped her arms forward, but they phased through Terra’s phantom form. She tried her best to grip onto him, but the man was now merely a hologram of sorts. No, no no no! “Don’t leave me, Terra! Don’t!”_

                                     Aseeeeeeeeeeeelesszzzzzzz,   
                                                 k-KEY-KEY-KEY KEY KEY KEYKEEEEEEEEEEY  
                                                                   ------------  
                                                                                   ReMEMbeeeeerr.  
                                                                                           Lostlostlostlost- what is lost  
                                                                                                   Can be found---in here-                Find me. Keep close.  
                               Don’t let go.

                                              Don’t let go, ASELES. Find the answers, find YOUR

                                                                          ANSWERSZZ-

ARE YOU LISTENING.   
                                 LISTEN CLOSELY.   
                                                     LISTEN TO ME.  
                                                                                 I WILL SAVE YOU--

 

 

“There’s no use running.”

Rapidly her eyes crushed, refocusing her senses from the collision moments prior. Her vision was foggy, as if she were repeatedly opening her eyes in salty sea. She was momentarily blind from one eye once her vision recovered, but she knew she would stand no chance against him if she stopped running now. She had been cornered in the expanded view of dirt and hot terrain of a wasteland.

She knew it was a risk coming here, but she was now regretting it.

She stumbled to a stop, her eyes catching sight of her bruised legs and nearly torn shoes. The air felt tight, and blistering hot from how rough the winds blew. A cliff was now blocking her path, and she couldn’t go back the way she came.

Her eyes averted back, her raven-long, streaked hair coating one side of her face, “You have meddled in something far greater than you know.”

The mysterious stalker began to stride closer to her, making the female grit her teeth. He wasn’t listening. He was hidden underneath a tattered, brown cloak, whipping to the direction of the wind. He held a straight, brazenly stance. The bottom of his feet touched and padded slowly across the dirt floor, making the woman anxious.

“I know exactly what I’m doing,” the male replied quite harshly.

The woman shook her head, “No…you have no idea.”

“I will change the future by rewriting the past,” the male cut in, his chest heaving once.

“You are different; you have always been different. Don’t let those horrible memories overrule the good ones. Nothing good will come out of it,” the woman retorted. She swung her arm across, and from the brief look to it…it resembled much like a fan with blades at the end.

Wait….a fan. Streaked-colored hair. Was this-!?

“Don’t force me to…” the male lowly growled, a strain of resistance in his tone.

“I’m not forcing you to do anything,” the woman replied back coldly, “But I will defy you with all my might.”

“…Fine, if that’s how you want it,” the male stretched out his whole arm to the side, and reached behind him to grip the handle of the blade attached to his back. There, the long neck of a Gladius blade shined a dark color of gray, the handle wrapped in gauze.

“This is not the only path you can choose,” the female tightened her eyes away from the weapon to the male’s hidden, shadowed face.

“My mind has already been made up.” He suddenly broke into a dash, and swung forward. The woman reacted quickly, and blocked the dark wave of energy with a cut of her fan…but did not anticipate the blade right in front of her.

He cut through her defenses full-force, and the woman fell to the ground, her eyes looking to the sky. A gash of pain began to unfold among her body, the dirt picking up around her hips and neck. A hot liquid ran down the edge of her mouth, but she knew well enough to know he wasn’t going to let her die. No, he needed her. And she was afraid. She was afraid of what _they_ were going to do...

“Keep your guard, Aseles.”

_Falling…………falling._

_Just kept….falling. Floating. Feeling….breathing._

Something was here….someone was here with her. Who….who was it?

A distant face, a familiar place.

Someone was here.

And this someone was near.

 

FFW,  
SORA’S POV:

Running his fingers through his hair, he never embodied such a helpless stature. He felt limp and numb in his bones as he stared absentmindedly at Aseles. The trip here was lost in a haze, but he was glad they made it the time they did. Sora was sure that Donald and Goofy would’ve stayed the animals that they were, but halfway back, they had reverted to their original selves again; he assumed Tiana and Naveen had been able to break the spell after all.

Sora’s eyes inspected Aseles while she laid on the bed, her arms finally free from the cords that had been injected inside to provide her the necessary nutrients for the past couple of days. It had taken at least a dozen potions to steady her health flow, but he could not imagine the horror that was happening in her mind since New Orleans. It appeared she had been induced in some sort of coma, but she was reacting responsively to Leon and Aeirth’s care. She mumbled and grunted in her slumber, and her fingers fidgeted to grasp something in her reach. It looked like she was fighting something, or someone.

His warm palm reached forward, and interlaced his fingers with Aseles’. She felt extremely hot, feeling much like she was running on a high fever. He shook his head to himself, his elbows cushioned by the mattress before him. He gave Aseles a slight squeeze before retreating his hand. His sky eyes glanced to the other side of the bed, seeing Axel sleeping soundlessly.

His red waterfall of hair laid over his shoulders, the hood of his sweater covering most of the portion of his face. They had been taking shifts to make sure Aseles was recovering, but Sora knew far too well that Axel was close to Aseles; it was almost natural for Axel to take most of the shifts to look after her. The redhead was insistent keeping watching on her, but something else spoke about his presence around Aseles; was Axel afraid she wouldn’t wake up?

Sora exhaled from the lack of sleep he was getting, but he knew if he did, Vanitas was sure to interrupt his dreams. He had hardly said a word about it to anyone else, but the more he remained on the topic, the more he realized that he had been a fool. Aseles was put into danger because of him; he prioritized his position as leader more than their friendship. Would she even forgive him when she awoke?

He did this to her.

He wasn’t sure how he let this happen…

Sora stood quietly, making sure to not stir Aseles’ blankets from the right side of her. He gave a quick glance to Axel before keeping his gaze to the laying brunette on her bed. He sighed in pure disbelief of his stupidity, and began to head to the door. He should’ve done it sooner.

“Headed off?” Axel’s groggy tone mumbled through his crossed arms.

“Yeah. Keep an eye on Aseles, won’t you?” Sora asked. “I need to talk to Riku.”

“About?” Axel cracked an eye open, his bangs a complete mess on his head.

“Something,” Sora simply replied. Before Axel could question again, he pushed his feet to the door, and closed the bedroom’s entrance behind him. The walk down the steps was steady and true, already knowing where Riku would be.

Outside of the house, Sora was greeted with the clean, refresh scent of the morning. His eyes loomed across the lit sky momentarily before looking to the left. There, he began to walk his way, occasionally passing a resident or two. Up the Bailey he crossed, but there he ran into someone.

“Sora.” Leon greeted with a lifted hand. Sora lifted his back, but instantly let it drop the next second. Beside Leon was Cid, who was taking notes on a clipboard. Preparations for the gummi ship perhaps.

“Hey,” Sora replied back as the two faced him.

Cid finally lifted his head, and hummed, “You done did some damage to the ship, but she’s almost as good as new by tonight.”

“Oh, right…sorry,” Sora scratched the side of his neck, letting his hand cup his skin instead. “Axel is with Aseles, so she’s not alone.”

“Hmm,” Leon nodded slowly, “It a good thing you came when you did.”

“Do you know what’s wrong with her?” Sora asked next.

“Hmm….Aseles appears to have been injected with a dosage of sorts, or magic,” Leon crossed his arms, looking to Cid before gazing to Sora. “You stated she was left with Goofy, but Goofy confessed he had been knocked out for a brief moment. When he went to go check in on Aseles, she wasn’t responding.” Did someone else poison her? Who?

Sora sighed to himself, “It’s all my fault. If I had been more careful…”

“It’s no one’s fault,” Leon gripped onto Sora’s shoulder, giving it a reassuring squeeze, “You did the best you could. Things happened, but they won’t stay that way. She’s recovering now, and that’s all that matters.” Sora took a moment to reflect his words, but nodded in agreement. Leon let go, and looked to Cid next, “I’m going to see Jaqueline, but we’ll meet up near the Armory shop?”

“Yeah, sounds good, Squall.” Cid patted Leon on the back, and ignored the man’s stare as the blond proceeded to walk past Sora to exit the Bailey.

“….It’s Leon…” Leon sighed heavily to himself, rubbing the bridge of his nose before looking to Sora. “Was there something you needed?”

“Is Riku in the U.S.S?” Sora tried not to urgently ask.

“Yeah, he was asking about you earlier, actually,” Leon commented casually.

Sora blinked in mild surprise, “Oh, alright. Thanks, Leon.” Leon and Sora bid a brief farewell before parting.

Now arriving at the opened entrance of the underground chambers, Sora prepared himself with a heavy inhale before silently marching through the lit hallway. However, the further he carried himself through the green-lit path, his arms and fists immediately tensed, and his face creased in worry. He finally reached the handle of the last door, and he gripped onto the steel hand. He swallowed roughly, but cranked the handle downward, and pushed his way into the room.

Sora’s eyes averted to where the computer was, and indeed spotted Riku sitting in the computer chair. The silver-haired friend was running his hands swiftly across the keyboard, but Sora could’ve sworn he saw some sort of picture before Riku had logged out of the screen. Sora already knew Riku was too focused into the research database, and had to make his presence known. However he stopped midstride, seeing Riku turn in his chair, and his piercing eyes lock onto him. As if he were already expecting him.

“R-Riku, hey,” Sora halted to fully stand properly.

“Hey, Sora,” Riku stated coolly. “How’s Aseles?”

“She’s doing…alright,” Sora found his words, but Riku immediately caught onto his preoccupied thoughts.

“That’s good. What about yourself?” Riku arched a brow, his right arm resting on the edge of the modified and renewed keyboard. Sora did not answer, making Riku look to his friend curiously. “Whatever it is…you can tell me.”

But it was easier said than done. Riku was not that intimidating to ever talk to, but ever since they got back to the islands, Riku held this matured aroma to him that he was unaware of until only recently. While Sora traveled with his friends and helped people along the way, Riku was more stationary, and was involved far more in the town with the adults. Not that Sora was regretting reaching adulthood…but it just seemed Riku grew a lot faster than Sora had expected. His experiences out of Destiny Islands had been far more harsher.

“Riku, I need to ask you a favor,” Sora finally announced after Riku had stood up.

“Yes?” Riku waited, unfazed as Sora approached closer to stand in front of his friend directly.

Sora swallowed, “You’ve had…more experience with the Darkness, and-“

Riku constricted his eyes, slightly confused but alerted, “….Sora, what happened?”

“In New Orleans, in the Underworld, I….I need help with something.”

“Sora?” Riku’s gloved hand clasped around Sora’s upper arm.

“Riku, help me,” Sora breathed out shakily, his own digits clamping underneath Riku’s forearm.

“Help you with what?” Riku interrogated.

Sora’s eyes lifted, a strong force of determination glassing over them, “Help me control Vanitas.”

 

FFW  
ASELES’ POV:

_Keeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeey._   
_Blaaaaaaaaaaaaade…….._

_Do you know what you’re searching for?_

“HEY. HEY!”

 

_Heh…I don’t think you do._

_‘Get out. Get out. Get. Out. Of. Me.’_

_I will find you soon………..and I will help you rid of the façades in your life._

 

“Aseles! Aseles!”

 

_‘No….get out. Please get out.’_

_I can teach you so many things. So many things. Let me teach you, and you will learn so many things…._

 

“Aseles, listen to me!”

 

_‘I don’t. I don’t want to!’_

_Oh, Aseles. When are you going to learn?_

_I’M NOT LEAVING-_

“AGGH!” Her lungs drowned the clear air, and her body shivered uncontrollably beneath her flesh. Her arms flailed around swiftly, but she gasped again when she felt the chains around her wrists. Aseles’ eyes fluttered wildly, and above her was a figure with flashing red hair. There was another presence in the room, but Aseles couldn’t point them out-

“Hey! Hey! Wake up!” Axel’s voice echoed out deeply, and Aseles found her body freezing in place. What? Where-how did-where was she???

Aseles ceased resisting, and Axel’s blurred hands on hers let go. She tried to adjust her view, but everything was rotating, tilting and hindered to favor one side. She squirmed inside the bed sheets that were over her, grunting from the fierce heat her body was radiating out. What happened? Where was she?

“….Hey…” Aseles felt a cool palm on her cheek, and she grew drunk from it. She sunk her face into the chilly sanctuary of skin, exhaling unevenly from the sudden fright she relapsed in moments prior.

“Le-Leon…” Aseles choked out, coughing several times before she felt the soothing caress of a hand on her back.

“Rest…” Leon’s form began to clarify. Aseles looked up to him, seeing him retrieve a damp cloth from Aerith beside him. She sighed delightfully slow when the iced towel met her flaming forehead. It settled her nerves.

“Where….” Aseles mouthed out. A clasped hand patted her side, and she looked to her left to see Axel was sitting beside her, his elbows lazily resting against his bent knees. He hunched forward with a slight smile, the view of it relaxing Aseles further.

“Axel,” Aseles croaked out weakly.

“Bandaged up pretty good, wouldn’t you say?” Axel commented out, but a grin did not occupy his face. Instead, his words sounded like a refreshing statement rather than a joke.

“How long was I out? Donald, Goofy?” Aseles coughed roughly once, the mental voice now seeming like a distant memory.

“They’re fine, fixing the gummi ship with Cid,” Leon combed his hand through Aseles’ hair, tussling it a bit. “Two days now,” he finished.

“….Sora?” Aseles rolled out deeply.

“He’s running a few errands for me with Riku,” Leon replied back. Aseles stilled, and her eyes looked up the ceiling, glued onto a specific pattern on it. Sora went to go talk to Riku, finally? “Aseles, I don’t mean to pry but…what happened?” Aseles’ face dropped, and she blinked slowly to recap the last thing she remembered.

“It’s okay if you don’t remember,” Aerith approached next, patting Aseles’ face with a second towel. Aseles swallowed gently, and felt her fingers grip onto the bedsheets. To grip onto some form of memory, a face, a voice…anything. No, all she was remembering were those hazel eyes. Last place she was…was in New Orleans. And….the fight with Vanitas-

“Ugh, I can’t,” Aseles strained, feeling the edges of her eyes trying to recoil back the tears, “I don’t remember-“

“Hey, it’s okay,” Axel patted her shoulder gently, making her look to him. “Take it easy. Relax.”

“A-All I remember is…feeling really cold. Then, I couldn’t wake up…” Aseles seethed, shutting her eyes, “My dreams…that’s all I remember right now. Crap-!”

“Hey!” Leon gripped onto her hand, but Aseles was determined to sit up. She wrapped her arms around Leon’s neck, and she pulled him into her. She shuddered greatly, and began to sniff her tears away when Leon embraced her back.

“I-I was afraid, Leon…” Aseles buried her face into his chest, feeling Leon’s fingers comb through her hair. Behind her she felt Aerith’s palms try to soothe her. If only they knew, if only they knew what had occurred in New Orleans. Vanitas’ face was not the face she wanted to recall, but it lingered, mocked her from the back of her head. She didn’t know what to do. Gods of Olympus, she didn’t know how to save Sora. Whatever it was….she knew it was a stroke of luck.

“It’s okay…you’re safe here,” Leon hugged her tighter, resting his face into the top of her head, “It’s going to be alright, Aseles. You’re home.”

LATER  
RIKU’S POV:

Riku halted before the delivery store’s counter. He rubbed the back of his head, and felt the terse muscles of his arms and legs. The sunset of red and orange glorified and bloomed across the town’s rooftops, with the citizens and residents of Radiant Garden still abundant even during this time. In a matter of three hours, they would all indulge themselves inside their homes.

“Riku.” The male clerk caught his attention, and the teenager looked around to see the letter he was holding out to him.

“Thanks,” Riku took the letter in hand, instantly recognizing His Majesty’s writing. Riku bid the familiar clerk a quick, one-finger salute, and made his way toward the inner square of the Market Place. He took a quick look around before making his way to the brick wall that overlooked the scenery of the green expansion of the Maw below. His finger jammed into the opening side of the envelope, and he began to tear of the results he might discover.

Aseles had finally recovered consciousness earlier today, and the thought relieved him. It was as if Riku was her big brother, as if Ansem’s burden of keeping her safe never left. There, he noticed it was still very much true: he had to carry on Ansem’s promise to her.

After having combated with Sora, the silver-haired male was all too shocked of what his best friend had to say, because Riku would have never guessed such a thing could harbor inside of Sora. He was the most cheerful, naïve, lit guy he had ever come to know, and to now see such a force was hidden inside of him worried Riku. Sora threw all he could manage to say in the matter of an hour, but even then, Riku was flabbergasted of the sudden news. But then, that explained why Sora’s held an unknown expression on his face since he got back. He was the reason Aseles was in her current state, but Riku knew it was much more than that.

Whoever had attacked Aseles was someone who knew her, and had induced her into a coma. The in-fluctuation of given memories was enough to disrupt whatever system Ansem the Wise inserted inside of her, giving Riku that much difficulty to find a solution to her problem. Whatever it was, the damage had been done, and now he was very unsure of what she was thinking of.

So, naturally, he wrote to His Majesty on an idea of what could be done. It was all for naught since Aseles had finally woken up, but maybe King Mickey could help him reverse whatever had been done to her. It was worth it shot, and he had hopes when he finally extended the letter out fully with two fingers.

_Dear Riku,_

_It’s unfortunate to hear what has happened to Aseles. If Ansem’s prediction is correct, whoever disrupts the flow of Aseles’ chain of memories will result in catastrophic consequences for her. I fear her memories will start coming back without notice, but that is left unsure since we do not know who it was that triggered it. Something does not fit._

_If her memories do start pouring into her, we must be careful with her state of being. I feel that if we were to imbalance the force, we would worsen the damage._

_Ansem the Wise had warned me about several individuals who would try to disorder the balance of Aseles’ memories, but from what I know from traveling that none of them should have been a threat of any sort. Whoever this is, whoever corrupted her mind is someone Ansem didn’t anticipate or warn us about. Maybe he forgot someone? I hope not._

_If she wakes up, keep a close eye on her. That’s what I would do at least._

_And Riku…..don’t tell her yet. She’s not ready._

_-Mickey  
P.S. I’m sorry._

 

Riku wrinkled the edges of the paper before gritting his teeth, and ripping the letter apart. Everything was getting more complicated around her. If only he could tell her, if only. If only he had not promised to the old man.

“Damn it,” the keybearer sighed. He let the pieces of parchment drop down from the cliff’s side, and directed his attention to his feet. He began to cut his stride across the Market Place, his head slightly hunched. Now was a good time to see her.

If she found out the truth….he knew she would never forgive him.

ASELES’ POV:

She waved to the young boy from the door, but anticipated her side from being crushed from Stan’s dashing hug. She huffed, but smiled when she felt Stan hug her. She hugged him back, and the boy parted to sit in the chair Axel provided him. However, he got a second chair, and a few seconds later, Stan’s mother appeared from the hallway. Axel gestured her to sit, and she thanked him kindly before taking the seat. Aseles quirked a smile, lifting her fingers gently to say hi to her.

“Nice to see you’re awake,” Jaqueline responded, patting Aseles’ hand and brushing it afterwards.  
Aseles nodded, and looked to Axel, “Thanks.”

“Sure. I’ll give you…some space,” Axel walked his way out, closing the door halfway. His footsteps retreated to downstairs, where Leon, Aerith, Donald and Goofy were.

Aseles turned her attention to Stan and Jaqueline now, “How have you been?”

“Well, but I think the question should be directed to you now,” Jaqueline responded gently. She sighed, brushing her black bangs behind her ear, “It’s nice to see you’re finally awake. Leon grew extremely worried, as did I.”

“Right. I didn’t mean to worry anyone,” Aseles exhaled her words out, her fingertips meddling with the soft, linen sheet Aerith had taken out for her. “I tried to wake up, but I couldn’t it. It was like a bad dream…” Her eyes trailed to the side, and toward the small window of her room.

“What did you dream about?” Stan probed, poking Aseles’ shoulder.

She collected her words, a frown settled on her lips, “A friend, wondering if I’ll see him again.”

Terra…..what in the world happened to you? It was so abrupt. So disturbing. What happened in that alleyway?

“What happened before?” Jaqueline asked, “Before you were unconscious?”

“I don’t remember…” Aseles shook her head, a sting grazing the side of her temple. She rubbed it firmly, “Nothing is coming to me. I was on the floor, after-but then...” Her words trailed off into silence, and she sat up to rub the back of her shoulder. She winced slightly, all too familiar with Vanitas’ jabs at her. Sora still hadn’t shown up. She wondered if he was still with Riku.

“It will come back to you,” Jaqueline tapped Aseles’ forearm. Aseles released her grip on her hair, letting the strands poorly fall beside her face. She nodded in response however, knowing it was best to let it come to her instead of fighting it like always.

“It’s always nice to see you,” Aseles smiled softly. She rustled the top of Stan’s hair, making it point forward instead of upwards, “You’re like the brother I never had.”

“Hey…” Stan pouted, fixing his hair back. “Very funny.”

“Heh,” Aseles coughed to the side roughly, feeling her throat scratchy and grimy, “Ow.”

“Here.” Aseles lifted her eyes to see Jaqueline had poured her a glass of water from the dresser. Aseles took a kindly, and began to drink eagerly. Once finished with the entire glass, she handed it back to her with a small nod.

“Thanks,” Aseles crossed her legs underneath the sheets, setting the pillow in her lap to rest her elbows and arms, “though….I feel like I got sick the same way you did.” Her eyes slowly lifted, seeing Jackie ponder on the thought, her eyes gazing along Aseles’ expression. Stan looked between the two, but said nothing.

“Perhaps…maybe the same thing did happen to you,” Jaqueline scrunched her eyes, “I believe it’s worth mentioning to Leon. It might not be the case, but we do not want to rule out anything either.”

“Right,” Aseles answered gently. A moment later, “Sometimes…I wonder if this keyblade brought me nothing but ruin.”

“It’s not good that you question yourself so severely,” Jaqueline stated.

“But….why?” Aseles directed her gaze over, catching Jackie’s eyes, “Why did it choose someone like me?”

“Hmm…maybe….it knew something you didn’t,” the older woman replied. “Do you accept your fate?”

“What?” Aseles sharply looked over, but Jackie was undeterred.

“Do you accept your fate with the keyblade?”

“….I….don’t know,” Aseles recollected the words, “There is more to the keyblade…more than I might ever know.”

“Don’t let it disturb you so much, Aseles,” Jackie insisted as Stan looked between the two. “Everything you have endured must have happened for a reason.”

Aseles shook her head, exhaling lowly, “No…that’s not true. Things just happen when I’m there.” A knock echoed into the room, catching everyone’s attention to the door. Aseles felt herself turn to stone, her eyes marginally widening to see Sora was there, and Riku and Kairi behind him. Crap.

“We should get going, you’re going to have a lot of visitors today,” Jaqueline smile, and stood up along with Stan. Aseles opened her right arm, and instantly grunted from Stan’s tight hug around her.

“Feel better! Here,” the boy reached into his back pocket, and pulled out a thick piece of folded paper. Aseles raised a brow, but took it. Heh, it was a “Get Well” card, with a moogle drawing inside of it.

“Haha, thanks,” Aseles giggled lightly, ruffling Stan’s hair one last time to gain satisfaction from another grumble of his. Jaqueline came next, and set her hands on either side of Aseles’ head. Aseles blinked rapidly, feeling her lips kiss the top of her head, almost protectively.

“Do not doubt yourself,” the woman retreated with a smile and wave, and rounded the trio as they greeted her. She and Stan began to walk down the stairs, now leaving Sora, Riku and Kairi to be able to enter.

Aseles quickly withdrew herself to rest against the headboard of the bed, but her instincts swiftly curled her toes away from Sora’s presence. She hugged her pillow after setting the card beside her, but felt the jab of her nails enter the feathered cushion. He seated himself last on Aseles’ left side, while Kairi and Riku were on her right, closest to the door.

“It’s nice to see you’re awake,” Kairi greeted first with a large smile, holding onto Aseles’ hand tightly. Aseles returned the gesture, and looked among the group, but swiftly dodged Sora’s as slyly as she could. It’s not that she didn’t want him here…she just wasn’t sure how to react with him.

“Yeah, glad to know I’m awake too,” Aseles scoffed, retreating her hand and pushing it into her pillow. “What have you guys been up to?” Riku and Sora glanced to one another, but Aseles knew that was territory she probably didn’t want to get into first.

“Mainly Riku and I have been helping around with the Hollow Bastion Committee. The computer was upgraded, so it has more modifications,” Kairi began, and continued to venture off into the type of help she was providing with Aerith. “I grew really worried, when we were patching up your injuries. We weren’t sure when you were going to wake up…”

“But she was going to,” Riku added in unconcernedly, catching Aseles’ attention. “She always does.”

“I guess…” Aseles shrugged, scratching the back of her head to ease the tangle of her strands. “But thanks, for caring.”

“You’re our friend, and we’re yours,” Kairi nodded urgently, cupping Aseles’ hands into her own, “No matter what. We’ll always be there for each other.”

“Yeah, we will be,” Aseles grinned briefly, patting Kairi’s hand.

“I think Sora needs to go over some information about the gummi ship,” Riku unexpectedly informed. Aseles lifted her gaze, but did not direct her view toward Sora. Instead she looked straight to Riku who was not breaking the glance from her, “It’s important.”

“Oh…” Aseles breathed out. Had Sora even moved an inch since he sat?

“Oh, alone?” Kairi inquired when Riku stood. Riku nodded silently, making Kairi raise a brow to him, “Um, okay…” The redhead hugged Aseles around her neck, but Aseles found her lavender eyes move to her right where Sora was planted.

“Thanks,” Sora responded, making Kairi wary of leaving.

“See you downstairs when you’re done,” Riku finished as he fully led Kairi out to close the door behind him. Aseles sighed once she heard their footsteps continue down the hallway, indicating for certain that she was alone in the lamp-lit room with Sora.

Aseles rubbed her upper arm with her left hand, tentative on how to handle her situation now. She dared not to make eye-contact, and instead looked to her fidgeting fingers on her pillow. The room was beginning to grow hot, and it wasn’t her fever making a comeback. She saw, felt Sora shift in his chair, hunching forward to fully rest himself against her bed.

“Aseles…” Her eyes flickered a bit, recognizing it was Sora’s, but she would rather not tempt her fate and find it was Vanitas talking to her.

“…Yeah…?” she simply replied back, looking to the door instead.

“It was wrong of me to not tell anyone sooner. I’m sorry I hurt you,” Sora started. He paused in his words, and didn’t sound too confident as he continued, “You probably don’t trust me anymore…that’s-I don’t blame you, I mean.” The silence brew thickly in the air, and Aseles was getting agitated in being in the same position. She moved herself to the right side of the bed, away from Sora’s touch. Sora lifted his stare, and frowned. However…

“Sit,” Aseles moved the covers away, and opened them to Sora.

Sora blinked, but he slowly stood, “Are you sure?” He received no response, but ended up tugging his shoes off by the heels. He seated himself to sit next to Aseles, and winced while he adjusted his hips and back. Aseles looked over while he was fixing the blanket around his lower half, and she noticed the scars that were healing around his arms and hands.

“Where are those from? They look new,” Aseles asked.

“Ah, training with Riku,” Sora nodded lightly, his left hand soothing the three inner fingers of his right. “He’s helped me a lot…feel kind of stupid not asking for his help earlier.”

“…I’ve made stupid mistakes too,” Aseles replied, shrugging absentmindedly.

Sora looked over to her, “Aseles…?” She resisted the urge, but his calm demeanor pacified her thoughts. She squeezed the pillow in her grasp, but slowly and surely began to rotate her head around. Her eyes sunk into Sora’s oceanic blues, and he finally smiled.

“I’m really glad you’re alright,” he dropped his hands to bed them on the outer blanket.

Aseles quirked her mouth, “I’m glad you’re alright too.”

“I’m so sorry, Aseles,” Sora’s smile began to deplete, his head lightly bowing to face away from her, “I’m afraid of losing your trust, just because I was afraid of losing everyone else’s. I told Donald and Goofy what was going on, but they said they were glad you were there to help me when I needed it.”

“What if I can’t save you next time it happens?” Aseles cut in swiftly. “What if I can’t save you, then who is going to save us?”

“…I will,” Sora gripped onto Aseles’ fingers, and she felt the pressure of something warm against her chest. She looked to his hand, and drew her gaze up. Sora leaned in lightly, giving her fingers a rough yet tender squeeze. She felt something compel her mind to haze, and for once in Aseles’ life, or the few times at least, she felt….safe.

“I’ll save you, Aseles,” Sora nodded firmly, and their intertwined hands were raised to hover in-between their faces. “I won’t let you down,” he curled her fingers into his. Aseles did not withdraw her hand from his. Instead, she let it lay bent with Sora’s grasp, and watched them rest on top of the blanket they were sharing.

Aseles immediately looked ahead while Sora cleared his throat with his free hand, “…What are you doing tomorrow?”

“Erm..” Aseles blushed faintly, curling her toes repeatedly underneath her bedsheets, “try to get out of the bed, if Leon let’s me.”

“If he does, do you want to go get ice cream with me?” Sora smiled softly, “After training with Riku, that is.” Aseles felt the bubbling sensation of air lodged in her throat, and the sweet slender of a warm wrap of silk around her ribs; she knew it wasn’t the bandages underneath her shirt. Jeezes…Sora just always knew how to make her feel better, didn’t he?

“Yeah….Ice cream sounds good,” Aseles elatedly but softly replied.


	11. Wedding Crashers

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Project due tomorrow.  
> My dog went in for surgery.  
> I got sick and running a cold, cough and fever.  
> All I did was write to keep my sanity flowing. 
> 
> Good start to the week.  
> Enjoy this chapter, took a lot of editing and wrote new content, but I hope it's up to standards. Thanks for all your support, I greatly appreciate it.
> 
> Sincerely,
> 
> (A really sick, tired and sore) Keys

_???_ POV:

Something told him that this new arrival would pose as a problem…but it was best to provide her with the greatest service he could accumulate for her received wounds. He needed her alive, he needed her to be a lure for what he needed.

He nodded to himself, cupping his sharp, angular chin with a soft hand, eyeing his puppet of a soldier bringing her over, and placing her in a separate room of the metal hallway of the floors . If she didn’t pose as a threat, then there was nothing to worry about. All they had to do was wait for her to wake up. That was the next step.

And he smiled.

“I believe it’s time to plot the next move.” A thick accented voice cooed from behind.

The elder man hummed in agreement, and he rested his arms crookedly behind his back, giving the appearance that he was a hunchback of sorts.

“Is our princess of Radiant Garden making a move?”

“Indeed, she is,” the dark-haired male replied.

The senior chuckled, “Of course she is. Can’t simply stay awake from the taste of adventure. Surely, the boy is to comply to her whims, like a moth to the flame.”

“He always has a spot for her,” a scoff played out in annoyance.

“Proceed, then. Do not fail me, fighter. Everything must fall accordingly to plan.”

FFW:

The few days trekked by ever so slowly, but Aseles took it as an opportunity to fully recover from her injuries.

The day after Sora’s apology, she was well enough to only travel so far to the ice cream stand (discounted by Donald’s uncle Scrooge) before being guided by Sora to the house. Instead of immersing themselves to the others, they ate their bowls of sweet vanilla together in the kitchen, and enjoyed each other’s sole company. It wasn’t something more for Aseles, but it was something different to finally settle her mind and body for one day (it was a bonus she didn’t dream of anything, or she didn’t recall if she did). She was glad Sora could give her that, and that’s why he was a good friend. She would never want to tarnish that, and hope nothing and no one would.

Sora was...someone special. She was unsure what it was, but he was. He must know that by now...

One thing she noticed however was how Riku was consumed in his own silence, to the point she considered and debated whether to confront him or not. He seemed preoccupied with something in mind, but she was greatly uncertain what could be going through that teen’s secular web of judgements. She decided against it, and concluded she wanted to play it safe with her own situations in hand rather than take Riku’s. She appreciated that he was helping Sora with his Darkness problem, and wouldn’t want to ask for anything more than he was already giving. In addition, Riku was not one to share feelings, as Aseles already obviously knew.

Then, came up Kairi.

Aseles has nothing against Kairi whatsoever, and did enjoy her company every now and then when she came to visit her in her room while she was recovering. Aseles took fond of her kindness, and the way she lit up the room with a simple smile or a box of treats. They did not have a lot in common, but Aseles respected that. As of late, Kairi was becoming preoccupied much with Sora’s time; Kairi was more bold in her approaches to confront Sora about some things, Aseles unsure of the significances it was rising.

From what she heard from Sora, Kairi had brought up the idea of traveling with them (yet again), and that did not sit well with Sora as Aseles knew it wouldn’t. Aseles mentioned how it was somewhat unfair for the redhead to be judged so quickly, yet also accepted that Kairi had not been in pleasant situations before when it came to traveling. Granted, it was none of her fault, but it could’ve been prevented.

“It’s not that I don’t trust her. I fully trust her,” Sora admitted, his fingers drumming against the bowl of ice-cream that was halfway empty. “I don’t want a repeat, though. It was so many close calls.”

“I understand. I thought the same thing, when she asked me about it before,” Aseles agreed, quietly slipping the spoonful of ice-cream into her mouth. “I didn’t want to say something in your behalf.”

“Yeah, thank you,” Sora looked over to her, and nodded gently, “I really appreciate it.” The two finished their dessert, and were greeted by none other than the nosy redhead as he usually was.

The days after, Aseles got back to physical exercises with Axel. Ultimately, she missed him a lot as much as she missed Leon from the long absence, and it was great to say that she had equal amount of time with them. Axel aimed to raise her levels of endurance and combat while Leon navigated her around the constructions that were halfway finished throughout the Castle Town. She was more than happy to lift a board of wood or two. Aseles also ran into Stan at the center of the Castle Town, and sat happily next to him on the newly, installed benches of the square. Stan had picked up his own interest in learning how to tamper and construct mechanical things, and it instantly reminded her of how Cid must’ve been when he was a kid. She hoped the old geezer, Donald and Goofy weren’t having trouble repairing the gummi ship.

No news had arisen from the segment of the manufactured keyblade they had collected in Olympus, but Cloud seemed much determined to find out the properties of the elements that were holding it together. He expressed concern on how it was unlike anything he had ever seen, and left it at that. Tifa was working vigorously alongside him, and were occasionally joined by Leon and Axel. Aseles looked at the group curiously as she sat in the chair, the only one occupying the long table in the room. Her arm laid outstretched before her with the other holding her chin up, knowing sleep loomed in the far distance. It was odd...so odd to see such a gathering...but it made her smile. It made her relaxed and focused. It made her feel like she was home.

“Hey, champ! How’s it going?” Aseles grunted from the nice, _tender_ smack Yuffie granted onto her upper back. Aseles smiled nervously, rubbing the mark before taking a glance to Yuffie.

“Feel a lot better. Kind of nervous we’re headed out tomorrow already.”

“Why is that?” Yuffie crossed her arms on the table, her wide, probing eyes scanning Aseles’ face closely. “Nerves?”

“Yeah, a bit,” Aseles nodded in agreement, running her fingers to crease at the nape of her neck.

“You shouldn’t let the fear get to you,” Yuffie replied, her gloved fingers drumming at Aseles’ shoulder. “The more you’re scared of doing something, the more you’re not going to want to do it.”

“I’m not scared....I don’t think so,” Aseles sighed, cringing at the blur of golden irises fixated at her imagination. “I don’t know...what if I get injured again?” She didn’t mention it to Sora she had an increasing, uncomfortable balloon swelling at the pit of her stomach as the days drew closer to depart Radiant Garden. She knew Sora’s promise to her was genuine and raw, but how could he really carry it with only a few days of training with Riku?

“I bet you didn’t know that broken bones become stronger after they break,” Yuffie teased, poking the side of Aseles’ head with her finger.

Aseles sweatdropped, opening her mouth, closing it, and then saying, “I don’t know how that makes me feel better.”

“If something were to happen to you, we’re always going to be there to save you is all I’m saying, Aseles.” Yuffie reached up, and her fingers laced over Aseles’ shoulder. It made the brunette lift her gaze, and look to Yuffie directly. “Your friends will always be there for you, no matter what happens.” Aseles blinked, but she took it with a small smile, and argued no more about it.

The group began to clean themselves out of the USS, but what surprised Aseles was how Leon and Axel motioned Aseles to stay. She did not argue against it, and did as she was told. She looked to see the others leave, and once she was alone with Leon and Axel alone, she gave the duo a perplexed, arched brow.

“Am I in trouble?”

“No, of course not,” Leon gestured for her to stand, and he instinctively headed to the computer, pushing aside Cid’s empty cups of coffee to let his elbows rest on the desk properly. Aseles did not argue, but stood behind Leon with Axel at her right. The redhead held his hips in his hands, clearing his throat with an exaggerated cough before catching Aseles’ attention.

“Wanted to show you what we found the other day. We....thought it was best for you to take a look at these first.” Before Aseles could ask, her eyes shot to the screen, and numerous files began to open and stretch onto the display above. She unexpectedly cringed at the amount that was leaking out, but she looked to Leon’s profile when he spoke next.

“There are many files, but if you read at a steady pace, I’m certain you will be able to finish by the end of the night,” Leon stood up next, and pulled the chair back enough for Aseles to take its place. Her eyes narrowed to the file that was open; they were now organized in a slideshow with the stroke of the arrow keys.

“We call them _Reports_ , but we don’t know whose reports they are, exactly,” Leon added, crossing his arms and gesturing to the screen with a quick tilt of his head.

“You don’t know if they’re Ansem’s?” Aseles asked a bit too quickly, but regained her composure and rubbed the tingling feeling of her cheek.

“They might not be,” Axel continued. Well that seemed a bit far-fetched considering this was his computer...right? Who else would they belong to? Who else had access to this system? Aseles could not help but stare at the redhead who shrugged instinctively in defense of his remark.

“Either way, we’ll let you get started. I’ll be back to check in around three hours in case you stick around for that long.” The tall brunette male reached, and scrunched the top of Aseles’ hair into his hand briefly before ruffling it. “Take it easy.” Aseles took his words with great consideration, and watched as the two began to walk away. However, Axel stopped at the door, and he turned his body around. Aseles watched him press his middle finger’s tip to his temple, his other fingers expanded.

“Get it all...memorized.” He closed the door with a small crank, leaving Aseles to sigh to herself and face the lit monitor in front. It took her a moment to actually move as she stared to the main word that was displayed in the middle of the gray screen. She swallowed gently, and straightened herself up. She pushed her hand forward, and fought to uncurl her index finger to press the _Enter_ key.

“Report One...” she said softly to herself, and began to read.

It was safe to say, an hour later, Aseles was starting to develop a headache. She continued to read at a slower pace, but the information she was receiving was something she already knew, but was gathering a refreshed reminder about. Why the worlds were disconnected, the existence of Kingdom Hearts, and the power of the Princesses of Heart could be gathered to open the door. These were things she knew, things Sora, Riku, Leon and Axel had already told her about...but the next line was something she was not anticipating:

_And when Kingdom Hearts is complete, it is said the one who opens its door will bring about the creation of the New World._

_Such a feat is above any human._

_Or, to put it a different way: whoever opens that door will be reborn as something far greater than human._

 

 

What...did this mean? The New World? Greater than human? No, this wasn’t making any sense. Ansem the Wise did not mention any of this in his previous reports. But the text did not stop there. It somehow led to...this Keyblade War. The one Aseles was unwantedly connected to know. The Keyblade War ensued to reach the New World? To have this Kingdom Hearts opened...But Sora and the others had opened it already, some having been inside of it. She tried to piece the puzzle together, but it was hard to say with the deleted sentences and words that were picked the further the text read. Those who entered the Dark Realm never came back out...hadn’t Riku and Mickey been in it already?

 

 _Key Blade…_ “ _χ-blade”_

These words alone covered an entire file.

_We, Keyblade Masters, have a special gift. We can extract a heart, be it our own or that of another._

How could you...extract your own...h-heart?

 

Hesitantly, she skipped the file, and continued to skim across the broken, thrown words in the next report.

 

_The time___received word from Eraqus____

_true Keyblade Masters. Terra and Aqua...____

_But Ventus!_

_Terra is the key___found a loose thread at which we can tug to unravel___

_The first step ___Let him carry his faint light as he chases____

_Let the darkness make his light stronger, then let the Light deepen the Darkness. And where the two finally meet is where the stuff of legends will become real._

 

Terra...what had become of Terra?

Aseles held the edge of the desk, her eyes shifting along the keys, trying to make sense of the newfound information. Whose _Reports_ were these? They were not Ansem’s...Aseles knew they mustn’t be. It was indeed...someone like Ansem, but it was not Ansem.

Were they....Xehanort’s? No, the man was dead, he couldn’t be alive this whole time. He knew Terra, he knew this Aqua, Ventus, and.....Master Eraqus. She remembered Terra replying about him, before...h-he...No, they went over this, it was Xehanort, but…it wasn’t? No, no no no no-

Aseles automatically logged out of the files, and was met with a blue, empty screen in front of her. She stared at nothing but the digital waves traveling upwards. She knew she must be mad at this point, insane, bonkers, unable to mentally function properly. She felt her fingers, but oddly enough...they didn’t feel like she was moving them at all. She was breathing, but her chest was at a standstill. She was awake, but why did it feel like Aseles was....forever sleeping?

The knock to the door jumped her awake, and she turned to see it was Leon. He said he was going to be back in three hours. That would mean it was one in the morning..

“Aseles, you’re still here,” Leon stated rather than asked, as if he already knew she would be. Aseles stood up, but nodded, rubbing the sand out of the inner folds of her eyes.

“Leon...” Aseles started, but she didn’t know what to say after that. She opened her mouth, and only left it open for the soundless air to occupy her words.

“Aseles, what is it?” Leon hurried over, and his hands gripping onto her upper arms. Aseles lifted her hands up to gesture to him everything was fine, everything was alright....She didn’t know if it was though...

“I need you to do me a favor, Leon,” Aseles reply, rubbing the side of her head.

“What is it?” Leon slightly pressured.

Aseles lifted her gaze, “I need you to send a message to Yen Sid for me. And no one else can know. Just...Yen Sid.”

“What for?” Leon narrowed his eyes. “What were in those _Reports_?”

“You can read them, but they didn’t make complete sense. But this is urgent, Leon. I need to talk to Yen Sid. I need to know what’s going on in my brain. I know I can’t tell you much but I’m asking you to trust me on this.”

Leon hesitated, “I don’t want you getting wrapped up into any kind of trouble, Aseles.”

“I won’t, I promise. I really need to talk to him,” Aseles tried again. “The _Reports_ hint on some kind of war that happened a long time ago. If I go, I’ll tell you what Yen Sid tells me.”

Leon pondered on his thoughts, crossing his arms tightly on his chest, “....Only Yen Sid?”

Aseles nodded, “Only him. No one else.”  
“.....I’ll get your message to him.” Leon sighed heavily, resisting the urge to rub his fingers on his forehead, “All I want is for you to make the best decision for yourself.”

“I know,” Aseles acknowledged his father-manner, feeling faintly guilty she was mounting this unnecessary situation on him. “Thank you, Leon, for everything that you’ve done for me. I know I don’t say it much.”

“Hey, it’s alright,” Leon quirked his mouth, relaxing his furrowed brows. “Come on, we have to get you to the house. You’re heading out tomorrow.” He rested his arm over Aseles’ shoulders, and guided her out of the main lobby of the U.S.S after turning off the lights. They proceeded to stride through the hallways, and once they were outside Aseles was finally able to breathe.

The cool night flowed like a cold tundra of relief, and the stars in the night sky glimmered and shined in their great distances. At the stretched land of the Bailey were the bloomed shrubs that wavered with the soft wind, and the fenced wall that was to their right still lingered to provide the awesome view of the night horizon.

“You feel better, correct?” Leon asked after a few moments.

Aseles nodded, “Yeah, a lot better.”

“Be careful when you head out again,” Leon stated flatly, but Aseles knew there was an underlining to his request. Considering she had the habit of getting herself into situations, this was probably going to be another one. They walked down the steps, and began to make their trek through the residential housing. However, when they rounded the corner Aseles had to blink several times to figure out who it was sitting on the small steps of the house.

The slightly spiked silhouette of hair instantly gave it away, Sora standing up properly to unveil himself from the shadows. How long had he been sitting outside?

“Why am I not surprised that this is the reason why you sleep in on training day,” Leon replied to the yawning Sora. The teen waved a hand to repel his yawn, but proved useless. He garbled a response, Aseles unable to catch it.

“Thanks for bringing me, Leon,” Aseles stated.

Leon noticed her inclination, and nodded back, “Always.” He took his leave, and Aseles faced Sora who was already in his shorts and shirt for sleeping.

“Why were you waiting outside?” Aseles asked. Sora opened the door for her to enter, and closed it behind him once they were inside.

“I wanted to make sure you got back, since Riku mentioned you weren’t in your room,” Sora started.

“Oh, I was checking something on the computer...but I’m sure that wasn’t the only reason why you stayed up,” Aseles rested a hand on the top of the table, leaning her weight against it and hoping she wouldn’t collapse from the drowsiness that was skulking up onto her.

“There is, actually,” Sora began. He scratched the back of his neck, and he looked up the stairs briefly before turning to look at Aseles. She went lightly on edge. “I wanted to let you know that...Kairi is coming with us tomorrow.”

If Aseles had been drinking water, she would’ve choked on it.

“...Um....” Aseles leaned her head a bit closer, her shoulders unintentionally tensing. “Kairi is...coming with us?”

“I know we talked about it earlier, but I thought to give her a chance,” Sora quickly added in.

Aseles sighed gently, looking off to the side and averting her eyes to the ocean blues again, “Why did you want to tell me about it? I mean, you’re the leader of this group.”

“Doesn’t mean I don’t want to hear your opinion on it,” Sora informed immediately, dropping his hand and letting it hit his side.

“I believe I’ve said what I had to say on it,” Aseles continued politely. She rounded the table to head to the cupboards, and pulled out a glass for herself. She headed to the sink, and began to fill it up with the cold tap water, “What did Goofy and Donald say about it?”

“Donald didn’t say much about it, but Goofy was excited,” Sora kept his distance, crossing his arms and tapping his fingers along his right rest. She would guess Donald was not into the whole idea. He knew too well the dangers and complications it would bring in the journey. Four was already a heavy party to keep track of.

Aseles walked around Sora, making her way to the first step of the staircase, “And Riku?”

“He....doesn’t know yet-“

“That’s something you’ll have to tell him tomorrow in the morning then,” Aseles quickly cut in, “I’m not planning on getting any of his lectures.” Or his resistant attitude. She didn’t know which was worse.

“No, I’ll tell him,” Sora advised. He began to follow beside Aseles, and the two began to walk up the steps after making sure the door was locked and the lights were turned off. Once in the hallway, their voices lowered to soft whispers, careful to not awaken their friends.

“If she ends up going, I don’t want you getting obnoxious,” Aseles took a sip of her water, entering her room. However, Sora followed right after, and he only left a marginal crack for the door. He appeared insistent on defending himself on the matter, also by the way his eyes faintly constricted.

“What do you mean obnoxious?” His face lit a soft, golden brown from the cascading light of Aseles’ lamp. She placed her cup down onto the dresser, the edges of water fleetingly rattling before resting in a calm horizon.

“If something happens, I don’t want you freaking out is what I’m saying,” Aseles unbuckled her belt from her waist, and let it drop at the end of the bed. She gestured with an open hand to the brunette, quirking her mouth in a displeased, crooked manner, “You get...edgy whenever Kairi is mentioned.”

“No I don’t,” Sora argued, rolling his eyes and settling his hands on his hips. “I’m not sure how you get that...”

“Keep that in mind, whether you believe it or not,” Aseles inhaled, slipping her boots off next and dropping them against the wall. She unlatched her arm guards from the wrist, and set those on top of the dresser as well. She began to rummage through the two drawers, pulling out her simple pajamas to lay on her bed. She turned to Sora again, seeing the male was looking to the side, avoiding Aseles’ gaze. She sighed, but motioned her way to stand in front of him.

The yellow-lit eyes caught her, and she smiled, “But if you want her to go, we’ll keep her safe. And I hope you trust us to keep her safe.”

“No, I trust my friends,” Sora answered mildly flat. He didn’t smile back, worrying Aseles that he might’ve taken the situation severely.

“Hey, I didn’t mean to hurt your feelings. I know you’ve been working a lot with Riku.” Sora seated himself at the end of Aseles’ bed, his digits rubbing his wrists in an attempt to comfort his considerations. She joined him, resting her hands lazily in between her thighs.

“No, you didn’t hurt my feelings,” Sora crooked a smile, his head lifting to gaze at Aseles from the corner of his eyes. “We’ve been through rougher patches than this.”

“Right, I suppose that’s true,” Aseles exhaled, slouching her shoulders a bit. “But I know you worry about Kairi. You care a lot about her.”

“Yeah...I do. I mean....we’ve been friends for a long time. I can’t imagine losing someone like that.”

“No, that makes sense. I’m sure everything will be fine.”

“Hey...Aseles?”

“Hmm?” she turned her head, catching the shadowed blue orbs gazing to her. She noticed his hand open to her, and she questioned why Sora was lending it out to her. She took it nonetheless...and felt that feeling again. His fingers laced with hers, and his thumb stroked along the edge of hers. Aseles watched carefully, unable to deny the small crease of heat erupting along her cheeks and nose.

“Aseles, thank you,” Sora smiled warmly.

“For what?” Aseles gathered carefully, the warmth running up along her fingers, dripping into her arm and riding along her shoulder. This wasn’t like being in the U.S.S. This warmth was...different, tender...close.

“For believing in me,” Sora’s smile widened, and Aseles had to nervously chuckle to keep herself grounded.

“It’s not a big deal, don’t worry,” Aseles hummed, giving Sora a reassuring squeeze. “I think we stayed up long enough.”

“Yeah, heh. I agree.”

THE NEXT MORNING:

“Welcome to our gummi ship, Kairi!” Goofy greeted warmly to start their voyage.

The atmosphere was a bit different than usual, but it wasn’t something Aseles was going to complain about. They were a bit cramped in the cockpit, but the back wall was spacious enough to Aseles’ liking when she would go sit there. Goofy and Sora were more than willing to show Kairi the controls while Donald sat languidly in his seat, reading the manual of the ship. Sora was piloting this time, which gave the duck some rest from his persistent maneuvering of the ship. With their map updated again, they set course past New Orleans and hoped they wouldn’t run into any trouble in the galaxy.

Aseles heard the occasional chatter, which mostly consisted of Kairi and Sora reminiscing events from their island, and Goofy politely adding in a comment or two. Aseles and Donald instead faced their chairs to one another, and Donald began to pinpoint specific instructions of the modernized gummi ship.

“These graphs will pinpoint your direction along the horizontal grid, and this one will tell you how high or low your ship is going according to a nearby world,” Donald explained. “You can make markings, and you can program the grid so that your gummi ship can sail to it automatically.”

“So why don’t we always go on autopilot?” Aseles questioned.

“I like to see where I’m going. Machines aren’t _that_ smart,” Donald waved a hand, making Aseles chuckle at his remark.

“Where do we sleep?” Kairi’s voice cut into their shared silence, and Aseles couldn’t help but look over at Sora’s amused face.

“We like sleep so much, we sleep in the chairs,” Sora joked.

Kairi had to take a moment, but she giggled, “Oh, you’re serious?” Too bad that when sleep came, Aseles could hear Kairi’s constant shuffling to find a comfortable spot. Guess she was never used to sleeping in chairs ever.

Aseles tried her best to reduce the distraction, but once she did she wished she hadn’t.

The words from the _Reports_ played back, and she felt the awful drumming at the back of her head. It tapped excessively, like a twitching of sorts to get her to roll her head against the arm of the chair to rub it off. It only came back just the same, and Aseles was staring at the ceiling. What was happening to her? What happened to the guide that was helping her, Terra?

That man, he was mentioned in the writings...how the hell could he communicate with her even before he mysteriously disappeared? She tried her best to remember something from that damn alleyway, but nothing cohesive was gripping onto her. She felt misplaced in her thoughts, but something deep was beginning to reminisce, and rise. The sounds of those distant voices struck a familiar chord, and Aseles wanted to know what they were about...

_So, you want to know?_

_Heh, why don’t you ask?_

_That wouldn’t make sense, would it? Who would you ask? No one really, truly understands you._

_I do._

_I understand you._

_Your brain is already jumbled up, like a mashed puzzle that was too hasted to be solved, and crammed back into the box and never opened. Some of them stayed connected, while others are stuck at the corners, and others gripping onto the inner folds of the box. They don’t want to be let go...._

_You don’t want them to be let go._

_I know you. I know who you are._

_Aseles, why don’t you start putting the pieces back together?_

_I’ll help you._

_All you need to do..._

_is ask…_

“Aseles?”

A shake of the shoulder.

 

_Rise and shine._

 

“...Hmm?” Her lungs tingled a groan, the illuminating lights of the dome roaming over her as if she were being dissected and examined. She rubbed off the sting from her eyelids, her fingers stroking the bridge of her nose tenderly. The back of her head rested against the arm of the chair, but when she tried to sit up, she unexpectedly felt dizzy and cold. How long had she been sleeping?

“Aseles, we’re here,” Donald’s voice called to her, pulling her from the deep slumber she was trying to escape unsuccessfully. She sat up finally, and gripped her head with a slightly, raised pulse. She was sure she was dreaming of something….but why couldn’t she remember properly? It sounded…familiar.

“What’s the matter?” Donald inquired, patting the back of her shoulder gently.

“It’s nothing, feel really dizzy,” Aseles reassured.

“You did sleep a lot,” her friend added next. Aseles resettled her stomach and stood after unbuckling her belt. She looked along the interior of the gummi ship, finding it had made a stop. A bright, blinding color of yellow and beige stretched across the expansive land out the window. Once outside, she shuddered as the gummi ship took off into the sky, leaving the group that was already waiting for Aseles. She groaned slightly from hearing Kairi’s sudden squeal, and rubbing her ears to rid of the sound. Though, the brunette smiled when she fully looked up, and saw Kairi leaning over their current dune to look across the sandy plains.

“Welcome to Agrabah, Kairi,” Sora pleased her with a gesture forward, his fingers extended out as if displaying an artifact of extreme value.

“Is it just desert?” Kairi asked.

“Nah, you see the city?” Sora pointed as he leaned a bit closer to the redhead so they were both eyelevel.

“Oh….OH! I see it!” Kairi giggled, and nodded in understanding. “It’s not too far off.” She leaned back to Sora, and when Aseles raised her face, she saw her gaze almost dazed to the keyblade wielder. Aseles resisted the urge to stare, and ask if this trip was some sort of romanticized dream of hers. They had other matters to attend to, why couldn’t she kiss him back in Radiant Garden if she really wanted to?

“Oh, hey Aseles,” Sora acknowledged, making Goofy and Kairi turn.

Aseles yawned again, and raised a quick hand, “We’re ready to head over?”

“Yeah, let’s get going and find Aladdin. You’ll like him Kairi, he’s awesome!”

The lightly-tinted, blue sky expanse was overwhelming as always, and the clouds were scarce to provide any shade in their path. To cool herself, Aseles took out her keyblade, and pointed the tip to rest around the base of her neck. There, she gently expelled soft Blizzard spells, and was kind to offer some to Goofy when he tried to push off the heat. Instead of occupying her thoughts to constrict around their knots and coils, Aseles embraced the idea of seeing Aladdin, Jasmine and Genie again. She could only hope the thief was not into any trouble this time…or Jafar magically reappeared in some way again.

The heat of the sun intensified that of a concentrated, magnifying glass, but once they were inside the city walls, Aseles was quick to succumb to the shadow that the entrance provided. Too bad the hoard of people bustling about did not settle the heat any less. No, really, why were there so many people running around?

The markets were all open, and everyone seemed to be rushing with haste while incoherently shouting to one another that they were in a hurry or they were going to be late. There was no panic or dismay, but a sense of elation Aseles had never seen. Was there going to be some celebration her and her group were unaware of?

“What do you think is going on?” Goofy asked, wiping the rest of his sweat with the back of his gloved hand.

“I bet Aladdin knows,” Sora suggested, and began to cut his way through the crowd, “This way guys!” Kairi stuck close behind with Aseles and Goofy in the rear. As they cut around the corners and ducked under flying baskets that zipped from left to right, they finally arrived in front of the enormous, Palace Gates, harboring what Aseles knew to be the Palace of the Sultan. Sora lifted a hand, and knocked strongly against the dark oak with a fist. The group waited, but there was no response until-

“Hey, you!” The group turned, looking to the side to see three guards approaching. They easily towered Sora and Aseles, who were the tallest in the group. “What business do you have with Princess Jasmine and Prince Aladdin?” Ooo, prince he says. Wait. Prince?

“Uh, we’re friends, and we just wanted to drop by,” Sora replied.

“State your names please,” the first, main guard asked. Aseles grew nervous when she saw the other two grip onto the hilts of their swords.

“I’m Sora, this is D-“

“Sora!” the two other guards whispered, and the main one immediately headed to the door, opening it to reveal the garden walk toward the Palace. Well.

“Special treatment,” Donald whispered with a nudge, and Aseles crossed her arms followed by a roll of her eyes. Of course someone like Donald was going to suck this up.

“This way, your assistance is needed at hand,” the main guard bowed his head and led the way inside. The travelers trekked a bit behind, too enthralled of the decorations that were unexpectedly set along the garden. Tropical flowers and exotic shrubs filled the garden were every tones of green, with dark vines swimming down the sides of the stone walls. Colored banners of purple and white hung over the entrance of the Palace. Inside, the flow of people did not lessen from the ones outside; it was a river going in separate directions, pulled in different tides and controlled by unexplainable forces.

Never had Aseles been inside, but she was none too surprised to see everything in here was beyond her expectations of what a Palace would look like; columns and pillars with buttresses of extravagant designs flooded the room; colors of more gold, lavender and tan shimmered along the opened entrances of the different rooms. Glass patterns of pink petals were being transported around, with linen cloths for tables being carried out to the inner courtyard of the Palace.

Passing a pair of double doors, Aseles and the gang arrived in the main stomach of the organic architecture; where once sat a throne of sorts was replaced with an altar, streamers of gold hanging from the ceiling to indicate where the focus of the room should be. The rug of floral designs led to the exact same spot, with benches and chairs being set up to provide a good seat for the event. At one side of the area, it was coated in gifts, and it was there Aseles knew what the occasion was: this must be a wedding. That’s why they addressed Aladdin as a Prince earlier. It had to be.

The group was taken to an open doorway where a corridor led down to a couple of shut doors. Stopping in front of one, the guard knocked on the door.

“Princess Jasmine?”

“Yes, who is it?” a female voice rang that Aseles knew all too well.

“You have visitors. They claim to be Sora, and a group of friends,” the guard replied. He backed up a bit, and the door opened from within, showing Jasmine in a wedding dress.

Her hair had been gripped lower, and exposed her full length of hair to her waist. On the sides of her head were clipped purple flowers with a flow of exposing cloth that twirled around her hair from behind. Her outfit was decorated to be a long-sleeved dress that poured around her feet like petals. Around the wrists, lower abdomen and neck was wrapped in golden cloth with shoulder blades shifting upward just the same, and a pair of gold earrings completing her look. Jasmine was a stunning bride indeed.

“Sora, Donald, Goofy, Aseles!” Jasmine clapped her hands in excitement and rushed forward, hugging the group after they were invited in. She embraced Sora who blushed lightly, but he hugged her back nonetheless. Aseles followed next, with Donald and Goofy after.

“Hey Jasmine!” they all greeted, Kairi smiling.

“You look so purty!” Goofy noted.

“Aww, thank you,” Jasmine was unable to contain her excitement, and fixed the front of her dress for what Aseles might guess was the one hundredth time.

“What’s the occasion?” Sora thumbed to the closed door, titling his head to the side. Donald, Aseles and Kairi immediately stared at him with Goofy chuckling into his hand.

“You’re kidding, right?” Donald hammered first.

“Did…I miss something?” Sora interjected. Kairi giggled louder while Aseles facepalmed herself. “What’s so funny?!”

“She’s getting married,” Aseles replied with a _heavy_ sigh.

“OHHH….” Sora replied. It took everything in Aseles’ power to not slap him upside the head. She felt she would’ve made Riku proud if she did.

Jasmine laughed, holding onto her stomach of Sora’s comedic, genuine performance, “It’s quite alright. I’m very glad you are able to make it! I knew I felt something would happen today.”

“It’s too good of a coincidence that we arrived at your wedding,” Sora replied with a large grin. “Congratulations! We would never want to miss it!”

“Who’s your friend?” Jasmine smiled politely, noticing Kairi a second later.

“Oh, Jasmine,” Sora stepped forward, and placed a hand on Kairi’s back, pushing her forward a bit, “This is Kairi.”

“Oh! _You’re_ Kairi,” Jasmine gripped Kairi’s hands gently, and patted them, “It’s so very nice to meet you. Sora’s told me much about you, and I’m glad to say you have such wonderful friends.”

“Thank you, it’s very nice to meet you too!” Kairi stated jubilantly, the crease of her cheeks turning pink from the mention of Sora’s addressing her prior already.

“Where’s Aladdin?” Donald nudged with an arm, “Is he getting ready?”

“It’s bad luck to see the bride before the wedding,” Jasmine wagged a finger with a smirk. “But I’m sure he’s ready.”

“He’s one lucky man,” Sora beamed, crossing his arms, “I bet he’s excited too.”

“Would you like to be the best man?” Jasmine requested, holding onto Sora’s upper arm, “Aladdin had the idea, but he was very unsure if you would be able to make it on time to tell you.”

“Yeah, go for it, Sora!” Donald teased.

“What? Uh….” Sora scratched his head from behind, smiling nervously. “Really? You mean, right now?”

“No, Sora, next year,” Aseles couldn’t resist this time, and was proud to say she made Donald laugh extremely loudly. Sora turned red, with the others chuckling to themselves

“I know! And I would be honored,” Sora cleared his throat, moving his attention back to Jasmine.

“Perfect! The rest of you will be our honored guests,” Jasmine finished jubilantly. “Aladdin is in the last room down the hall, you should go inform him that you’re here.”

Aseles had never been to a wedding before, and needless to say she was pretty excited about it. A union between two people, bound together with vows of true devotion and friendship unlike any other…she was sure it was a nice thing to have. If it was for her? It was hard to say…

As she followed the group down the hall to meet Aladdin, Aseles had a hard time imagining or picturing herself in something as extravagant as a wedding dress. If she _really_ had to think about it, she would need to have someone to walk her down the aisle (maybe Leon if she asked…or Axel), someone to arrange the wedding, where the wedding would take place…and who the hell the groom would be.

“Psh,” she berated the idea. Surely it would never. The essential part of being here was to congratulate her friends, be there with them in such a special occasion, and make sure the world was in balance. It didn’t seem anyone had infiltrated this world thus far.

Once the group reassembled in front of the said door, Donald knocked this time and the team was greeted with none other than Aladdin, who dressed just for the occasion this evening.

His attire spoke royalty, with a long, tan tunic underneath his white robes, also outlined in gold cloth similar to Jasmine’s. His turban was turned into a full hat that rose upward from the front with an attached feather that streamed elegantly behind. Funny as it was, it was strange to see him with a pair of shoes on that twirled upward from the front as well, since Aseles was so used to seeing him barefoot.

“S-Sora! You guys are here!” Aladdin grinned exceptionally wide, pulling Sora into an embrace with their hand linked in front of their chests. Sora returned the gesture, and they parted with the same excitement as if they had never separated.

“It’s good to see you, Aladdin!” Sora laughed lightly, “We missed you!” Aladdin passed the hugs across, and Aseles felt so warm to have his arms locked around her; a long forgotten friend. When Aladdin came in front of Kairi, he paused and signaled with an identifying, casual finger.

He smirked, “You must be Kairi, right?”

“Yeah,” Kairi smiled, but jumped mid answer when Aladdin went to hug her anyways.

“Sora’s told me all about you,” Aladdin beamed, letting go to stand in front of the group properly. “I thought you wouldn’t show up!”

“We wouldn’t miss your special day for the worlds, Al,” Sora gave a thumbs up followed by a wink. “You ready to go?”

“Of course, I’ve been wanting this day for a long time now,” Aladdin rubbed the back of his neck, and let his fingers drag lazily across. His head tilted, and he smiled nervously with a soft brush of red paint across his face. “To be with Jasmine, that’s my dream. Boy, sounds kind of cheesy when I say it out loud.”

“No, it’s cute,” Aseles reassured, patting the back of his shoulder. “She’s excited as much as you are.”

“OH, you saw her already? I bet she looks beautiful,” Aladdin confessed shyly.

“Lets it going then!” Donald ushered, indicating to the door.

“Right, we need to show you your seats!” Aladdin motioned with a withdrawing hand after fixing his hat. “This way.”

Once again they were led down the hall and entered the large, vast room of the made-chapel. The trinkets, food and necessities were nearly polished to perfection, but it didn’t take long to find their seats considering they were right in the very front of the arrangement. Standing on the top step of the platform was a blue figure Aseles was all too easy to recognize. Genie had a clipboard in his hand, checking off the lists dramatically with exaggerated swings of his arms. He was disguised in a business suit, and was chattering with a wide-framed man that looked a lot like a mushroom compared to Genie’s silhouette.

The Sultan, Aseles guessed, was a man of a white, curly beard, and his small eyes could not compensate for his jubilated manners. He clapped enthusiastically to the prepared room, and he smiled wide to Aladdin approaching. Genie looked over, and stretched a toothy grin.

“Ready to go kid??” Genie clapped his hands together, the clipboard and formal attire gone in a poof.

“Yeah, definitely,” Aladdin greeted. “Sultan, it’s truly an honor-“

“None my dear boy! I’m very glad Jasmine has found herself a noble suitor such as yourself,” the Sultan clapped repeatedly before squishing his face into splendored happiness. “You shall make a fine Sultan in my place!”

“Look who’s back!!” Genie swept forward like a charging flag, and literally squeezed everyone off the ground and into a hug. He only spared Kairi who backed up in surprise, and giggled at the scene. “It’s so good to see you!”

“I can’t….breathe…” Donaled wheezed out while Aseles and Goofy were pressed back to back against Sora’s front. The male kicked underneath, making Donald quack from the sudden movement. They were placed back down, but Aseles couldn’t recover from the force fast enough. She gripped onto Goofy for support while he gasped in air. Sora fixed his hair in front, but seethed when Donald smacked his arm in retaliation to his kick.

“It’s nice to see you too, Genie,” Goofy finally replied for the recovering group.

“Say, you’ve grown taller, huh?” Genie immediately stabbed a large ruler beside Aseles, but he went forward to pinch Sora’s cheek in a motherly manner. Sora quickly backed his face, laughing with the others on Genie’s unwavering jokingly quips.

“Very funny,” Sora replied, fixed the front of his shirt. “We’re glad we made it on time.”

“Oh, Sultan, these are my good friends, the ones who helped me defeat Jafar,” Aladdin lightly led the elder, stubby man forward, and the group immediately bowed their heads in respect. The man cheered in delight, and reached to hold onto Sora’s stretched-out hand. He shook it wildly that he recoiled back and had to lift his hat from his face to look properly.

“Such an honor to finally meet the saviors of Agrabah!” Sora and Donald grinned from the recognition while Goofy merely waved off the announcement.

“Aww, it was nuthin’,” Goofy smiled warmly.

“The honor is ours,” Aseles added in with a nod.

“Wonderful, truly wonderful! It’s time to get into places, we must hurry!” One cue, all movement washed to the center aisle of the tossed rug, and Aseles found herself being pushed back to a seat that was before the large altar piece Genie had renovated with sheets of glittering white. Sora stood beside Aladdin who fixed his hat once more for good measure. He handed Sora a small box, but from where Aseles was sitting, she could see the ring that was for Jasmine when Sora peeked in it. The Sultan rushed down the decorated carpet to bring Jasmine to the altar. The crowds of guests began to pour into the main room, and chatter rose to the ceiling of the dome-like structure they were settled in. Behind the stand Aseles could see the large east wall, and how the sun settled its shine upon the many evergreens planted along the garden walks.

“This is so romantic,” Kairi mused, her hands collected in front of her chest as her eyes began to travel among the decorations. Aseles found herself sitting on Goofy’s left side, her own left empty. Behind she saw the entire rows stretching, and the people of Agrabah beginning to storm in. Jeez, were they all going to fit?

It was half an hour later that the bustling quieted, and a soft chime of Genie’s playing instruments that filled the huge chamber. Aseles looked to see Sora give his gang a thumbs up, and stand excitedly beside Aladdin who tried his best to keep his nerves down. Everyone’s attention turned to the far end of the opened pathway of the seats where two figures were introduced.

Jasmine and her father, the Sultan walked up to the small platform Aladdin and Sora were waiting, and the Genie orchestra applauded. The public followed, and Aseles pushed her hands in between her thighs, rubbing off the sweat that had moisture between her fingers. Her eyes caught Sora handing Aladdin the ring box, and Genie was now standing in front of Aladdin and Jasmine, facing the crowd with her father present by the mythical creature’s side. Aladdin and Jasmine locked their hands together in union, both unable to wipe away the large smiles erupted onto their faces. It was a level of happiness Aseles had never experienced, but she was glad she was becoming a part of it.

Her shifty eyes look to the right to see Iago, Abu and Carpet standing by, the two animals fixing their bows and Carpet waving to Aseles’ view. She waved back, chuckling.

Jasmine’s father recited to the crowd of the marvelous day, and thanked for their presence to celebrate Aladdin and Jasmine’s union, soon to be the rulers of Agrabah. The winged insects Aseles had swallowed now began to trot and swarm in full force, feeling her legs bouncing beneath to calm her nerves.

“We are gathered here today to join Aladdin and Jasmine in holy matrimony, wed to one another and rightful rulers of the city of Agrabah,” Genie announced so loudly Aseles could have sworn he had some sort of horn attached to his chords. “If there is someone in the crowd who believes that these two shall not be wed, speak now, or forever hold your peace.”

“Let them get married already!!” several, cloned Genies called from the crowd, and most of the audience couldn’t help but laugh. Aseles chuckled of his silly joke, and the laugher died to now look at the duo facing one another.

“Oh, well, ahem,” the Sultan cleared his throat, resuming his post. “Do you, Princess Jasmine, take Aladdin to be your lawfully wedded husband, in sickness and in health, for poorer and for richer, as long as you both shall live?”

“I do,” Jasmine fluttered her eyes dazedly, smiling radiantly.

“Do you, Aladdin, take Jasmine to be your lawfully wedded wife, in sickness and in health, for poorer and for richer, as long as you both shall live?”

“Yes, I do,” Aladdin cautiously wrapped his hands around her, and rubbed the ring that was placed on her finger. The air stilled, and Aseles was absolutely sure her lungs stopped functioning properly.

“Then you may kiss the bride,” Jasmine’s father announced, and stepped back. Silence filled the room, and Aladdin cupped his hands around Jasmine’s face, holding it steady. He leaned forward, their eyes fluttering to shut blissfully in each other’s wake. Closer and closer their lips drew, and the group leaned forward, all before-

BANG.

The roof of the chamber gave way, and the crowd dispersed in cries and screams of horror from the cold sensation that swept along the ground. A light coat of ice began to creep around the gap of the ceiling; standing above the dust was a group of five figures, their faces hidden within the shadows of their hooded disguises. One prideful person in particular walked forward, the hint of a grin emerging underneath the shadow of his hood. Sora and the gang immediately shot their bodies forward, standing in front of Aladdin and Jasmine. The extra Genie’s in the crowd rushed forward, all carrying machine guns and dressed in camouflaged suits. The crowd held their breath, but what angered Aseles was how the main leader of the spontaneous assembly took a look around, and clapped his hands in amusement.

“Now now….what do we have here? Looks like we interrupted a wedding,” the male voice rang, revealing Chad beneath the tan cape. His attire had changed to baggy trousers, and it resembled somewhat of how the civilians in Agrabah dressed. The other four mounted their feet promptly on the floor, their arms at their sides and hands holding their weapons: keyblades. Oh….great.

“What’s your business here?” Aladdin announced angrily, already armed with a curved sword in hand.

“Hmm,” Chad tapped his chin childishly.

“Answer the question!” Sora shouted as he pointed his keyblade at him.

“The princess….” Chad stated firmly, and the crowd gasped and mumbled incoherently. He pushed back his hood, and revealed his dark pools of eyes. His face was incredibly pale, black bangs pressed against the left side of his forehead.

“Protect Princess Jasmine!” the guards of the palace shouted, and they all charged with the extra Genies behind. Suddenly, the four assistances seemed to have moved effortlessly in a circle, and all guards were tossed to the walls. The crowd began to disperse and run amok, but to another great misfortunes, the exits were blocked by what appeared to be band of thieves. Iago, Abu and Carpet had been cornered against a wall, leaving Sora and the others to face the five at the very center while Genie and Aladdin paid mind to the flood of mercenaries coming inside. This was not good.

“Won’t hand her over?” Chad hammered devilishly. Sora stood in ground in the front of the group, teeth gritting. He said nothing, and the entire squad prepared themselves.

“This way!” Genie motioned for Jasmine and the Sultan. Chad lifted his arms, showing the blades that were attached to his forearms. He waited, but no one budged to stand aside.

“Suit youself.” Chad swung forward, Sora unhesitant to meet him in the middle. Like a fuse, the entire chamber exploded into chaos. Aseles, Donald, Goofy and Aladdin made way to block against the four Subs in retaliation.

“Take Kairi!” Aseles ordered to Jasmine.

“This way!” the Arabian princess gripped onto the redhead’s palm, but were defended by Genie from the hoard of bandits literally pouring over the walls. Aseles made the decision to focus solely on her enemy, and bashed relentlessly against the foe. It was a male from the sound of his grunts, Aseles determined to kick his ass in. The male struck his keyblade upwards, making Aseles skid back from the brute force. She paid to mind the oncoming bandits that made their way into the battle, and easily pushed them out of her way to continue fighting her opponent. However, the male suddenly began to give leeway, and Aseles struck him that he hit against a pillar. Was he giving up-

Aseles stumbled sideways, and she glared to the pretentious Chad who made himself present in her fight. The golden splinters of his eyes targeted her directly; Aseles did not falter to deliver the stare just the same.

“You really don’t know how to stay away from other people’s business,” Aseles hissed, gripping her keyblade strongly in hand.

“Care for a dance?” Chad smirked viciously, prompting Aseles to charge.

She swung strongly across, but Chad’s blades gave a challenge she wasn’t expecting; as if they were made of some steel, they kept Chad in his ground. She swung full circle instead several times, but she was only able to cut a small gash across his arm. He was unfazed by it, and he slid underneath Aseles’s whirlwind of attacks. Aseles tried to back up, but her chin was hit squarely by his flexible foot; the world spun immensely, and the throbbing pain was all too sudden to focus properly. In a quick, inconceivable movement, Aseles was suddenly gripped from behind, and her back was pressed against Chad’s chest. Her mouth was pulled back, the end of Chad’s cape now gagging her tightly to silent her cries. She began to kick furiously, but what led her in a panic was the pair of hands holding her legs steady, and lifting her off the ground. Crap!

Chad began to pull her back, carrying her painfully with her arms twisted beneath her. Instead of complying, Aseles lifted her keyblade’s tip forward, and sent a bolt of lightning to the Substitution that had gripped her ankles. The male fell down, now leaving Aseles’ legs to be free. She squirmed violently, and attempted to break Chad’s hold onto her.

“Can’t you be still?!” Chad interjected irritably.

“KAIRI!” Sora’s shout echoed across the chamber, causing Aseles to cut her gaze forward and see the brunette looking off to the entrance of the room. Kairi’s was struggling to escape two Subs from carrying her away, followed by a few bandits in tow that had plundered the gift table. Aseles was about to shout back, but her face was smashed with a piece of cloth. She inhaled the dust that entered her nostrils, and she gagged and inhaled poorly whatever air she could have. Crap, Chad drugged her.

“Aseles!” The voice was indistinguishable.

“Shh,” Chad purred, holding the contaminated rag over Aseles’ face. Her face automatically fell numb, and her eyes immediately shut out the sun from keeping her awake. Her limbs fell into Chad’s possession, and with a toss over the shoulder, the dark-haired male hauled his hefty reward, disappearing himself into the crowd of bandits that began to leave and flee the city of Agrabah.

KAIRI’S POV:

“Let me go!”

“Can she just shut up??” The taste of scratchy fabric was unpleasant, and she coughed into it when it was pulled too tight. She mumbled an insult, but the Substitution that was carrying her paid no mind to it. The travel across the desert was unbearable, and the ride on horseback proved futile to get away; they were simply too overpowered for someone like her.

“Are we almost there?” the female who had subdued Kairi first questioned.

“Just arriving, it won’t be long,” she suddenly heard a galactic voice respond up ahead. Kairi looked past the striding heads, mostly of them consisting of the bandits that had raided the party. Why were the Substitutions with them? Were they working together? Why were they all headed in the same direction?

Ahead, Kairi could see Aseles was being carried by the one who had attacked Sora first. Had they gotten a hold of Princess Jasmine too? When Kairi gave a good look around, she saw that Princess was nowhere to be seen. Was…was their plan to kidnap Kairi? Why would they kidnap Aseles as well?

“What are your intentions in this world?” the male voice from before stood out from the clatter of the group. A scoff ahead followed; the one that was taking Aseles spoke.

“My orders are of a higher rank that I cannot discuss about. Someone might be eavesdropping.” Several heads of the bandits turned, and Kairi felt herself shrink from the massive attention. What was this guy up to? What did he want with her and Aseles?

“Why kidnap them?” the male voice shrouded in a dark, teal robe demanded once more. He seemed…unfavorable with the teen’s intentions.

“Cassim, was it?” the male replied instead.

“Yes, that is my name,” the tall man in the lead responded.

“My orders were to do so, and that’s all I can tell you, mate.”

“I did not know you took orders from a higher force.”

“Hmph,” the male scoffed, shaking his head a bit, “Don’t we all?”

“Ah, a well observation,” Cassim added. “Though, do you plan to take them to your leader?”

“I don’t believe that should be any concern of yours,” the cold-eyed teen abruptly stopped, and everything seemed to freeze in place. The tension manifested in the air. What did he mean? “Our deal was to retrieve that staff of yours, correct?”

“Yes, that is correct,” Cassim replied calmly. Staff....?

“We will do so by doing an exchange, simple as that,” the accented fighter stated indifferently. “They will surely come for them, without a doubt. I suspect your thieves left the note?”

“They did, precisely.”

“Then there is nothing to do but wait,” Chad finished. The area grew quiet, and then the steps continued to walk through the desert. They were going to make an exchange for the staff? What kind of staff were they referring to?

Steady and platonic the rest of the walk carried out, but Kairi grew this nauseating feeling in the pit of her throat.

“Over there, straight ahead, Chad boy,” Cassim’s voice interrupted her thoughts, and Chad’s breathing settled easily. Instead of handing Aseles to someone else, he kept a dominant grip on her, making Kairi uncomfortable of the sight. They had to escape, they had to leave before they were kidnapped to some unknown place, or worse, some other world.

“Mount Sesame?” the younger man questioned. The man named Cassim gave a yes, and made his way to the edge of the shore of a large space of sea. The rest of the bandits began to form a line, though this Chad and the rest of the Substitutions were befuddled of what they were doing.

The older man’s arms shot outward, aiming to the settlement of rock in the far distance, “Open Sesame!” Kairi shrieked briefly from the fierce rumble of the ground, and she had to hold onto the arm that was keeping her upright to prevent from falling. All was still as the waves of water began to lift. They hooked over like waterfalls, revealing the lit entrance of a cave in the distance.

Kairi was forcefully led, but her eyes could not leave the sight of the enormous waves that towered over them; surely they would crush the entire fleet of thieves in a split second. Cassim was the first to enter the mountain’s face, followed by Chad, his group and the thieves behind. Kairi was pulled by both of her arms, but the moment she turned to look at the exit, the large sea crashed downward, and the entrance they had risen from was now blocked by the body of sea. Oh…oh no, how were they going to get out now? Even if they could escape…

“Where are you taking me?” Kairi fought to say the words through her bound cloth, trying to haul her limbs away. She was suddenly kicked against her back, and she winced greatly, kneeling against the ground.

“Will you shut up already??” the female from last time barked. However, what she didn’t expect was for the male named Chad to hurry over, still holding Aseles’ limp body over his shoulder. Kairi winced from the kick Chad delivered to the girl, making her fall back and hit the ground, hard.

“Doesn’t feel nice to be kicked down, does it?” Chad mocked angrily, sneering. “You lay another finger on the redhead, and I can guarantee you will find yourself at the bottom of the ocean floor.” He was met with obedient silence, the girl that had kicked down Kairi slowly getting up. She rubbed her stomach, and resisted the urge to let the tears fall from her eyelids. Chad suddenly turned to Kairi, and offered her his hand. Kairi bluntly refused it, smacking it away from her view. Chad’s face dropped, and his arm curled at his side. Kairi removed the rag from her mouth, tossing it at Chad’s face angrily.

“Whatever it is you want with us, you can forget it! We’re not a bargaining chip!” Kairi argued. The flames among the cave illuminated Chad’s sharp angles, and Kairi had to lean back when he confronted her face to face.

“I beg to differ; Sora would go to the ends for you. He’s done it twice, and I bet a third time will follow,” Chad began, making Kairi’s stomach coil and burn. “All I needed was for you to get a little curious, a little jealous of not being able to experience something other than your jail cells of worlds.”

“That’s not true!” Kairi fought, but she winced from the grip Chad laid on her wrist.

He tugged forcefully, making her look at him, “It’s very much true, _princess_. You can hide all those feelings, but deep down, all you want is a little adventure with your best friend, is it not??” A sharp slap echoed in the rocky chamber, Kairi feeling her palm stinging from how strong Chad’s cheek was. His face leisurely turned, and his dark coal of eyes burned with a fiery rage she was sure he was going to gut her. Instead, he rubbed his cheek off with his free hand, and pushed Kairi’s shoulder enough that her arms were gripped in by the two Subs right behind her.

“Take her to the cave. And tie her bloody hands as well.” Kairi grunted as she was forcefully sat on the ground, with only one lit torch providing light in the concave cell she was taken to. She grunted from the force, but sat very still when she saw Chad approaching. He laid Aseles down on the ground, took one last look at Kairi before making his way out of the small cave they were in. Abruptly, a large rock wall began to close out the light from outside, with only a horizontal beam of light cutting across the top. Kairi kneeled, gritting her teeth from how rough the ropes were holding her.

“I want two guards for every shift, understand? No one is to leave their post unless instructed, and not a bandit is to approach them,” Chad’s voice was muted from the outside.

“When will the exchange be made?” a second female requested, Kairi straining her ear to pick up the words.

“I would suspect that they should arrive later on this night. Knowing that, we can’t leave anything to chance. Two of you will stay here to guard one girl, and the others will accompany me to exchange one of them for the staff.” Wait…only one of them was going to be exchanged? No, what was going to happen??

“What about the other girl then?” another asked.

“It’s not polite to leave someone behind. Maintain your posts.” Oh no, they were planning to kidnap one of them. Knowing from past experience, Kairi was fearing the worst. She had to leave, she had to leave with Aseles, quickly before she dragged Sora once more for an attempted rescue.

“Aseles, Aseles!” Kairi crawled over, and she nudged her shoulder as firmly as she could. She grunted when she lost balance and her front crashed against Aseles’ side. Still, the brunette did not budge, making Kairi worry that much more. “Aseles, what did they do to you?”

“Escape…..” a sudden croak.

“W-What?” Kairi urged, budging her heard against Aseles’ shoulder. “Aseles, you have to get up! We have to leave!”

“Escape…” Aseles moaned out, and her head suddenly dropped back to being lifeless.

“We’ll escape together!” Kairi whispered hurriedly, and she slightly turned Aseles over. “Aseles! C’mon!” Kairi pleaded, but Aseles was now unresponsive.

Kairi fell back onto her rear, panting heavily from the increased run of her heart: should she stay with Aseles in hopes of escaping together, or try to escape without her?


	12. Unleashed

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Oh boy oh boy, here we are. 
> 
> Thank you so much for all the reads and support, I greatly appreciate it~   
> I'm very glad to be taking the new chapter out! A lot of things are setting in motion now, and tensions are changing for our crew. You'll have to read to find out, eh?
> 
> Have a great day/night guys, until the next chapter!
> 
> Sincerely,
> 
> Keys
> 
> You can also find me here!  
> http://xlehxblog.tumblr.com/  
> http://xlehx.deviantart.com/

SORA’S POV:

The Palace was left in a chaotic dismantle; the surviving decorations gripped onto whatever tether that remained, with gaps coating the Palace walls and tiled, marble floor.  The gift table was left with nothing but a torn cloth, and appealing food and ripped robes lay across the ground as if a child had thrown some sort of tantrum. There was no longer any resemblance of sanctity or homely presence in the invaded Palace, and how much it angered Sora.

The troubled brunette sat on the steps of the podium where Aladdin and Jasmine once were. His face was hidden deeply into his palms, the sun scorching and giving his body an unpleasant and extended state of discomfort. Joined inside of his sanded palms was the piece of parchment that was left on a stone brick once the invasion had dwindled down. He exhaled shakily, feeling Donald and Goofy tenderly patting his back and shoulder in an attempt to calm his nerves. He opened the note again with reddened eyes of frustration. His stomach turned in apprehension of the scrawled, hasted words:

 

_We propose an exchange: a staff that you possess for your two friends. Do not dolly, for time is precious._

_-Chad_

 

He even had the nerve to sign it. Why didn’t he listen...Why didn’t he leave Kairi in Radiant Garden like he, Riku and Aseles had talked about? The silver-haired teen was insistent on leaving her behind, but Sora....he wanted to do something nice for her. Something to show that they were still friends, and he had not forgotten about her. How could he have been so careless...

“We follow the trail that they led before the sand rolls over them,” Aladdin was talking while Sora was trying not to sulk in his stance.

As for the staff they referred, even Aladdin did not know they possessed such a thing. It took them an entire hour of looking around to conclude that there was nothing like that within the Palace walls. Did someone take it during the raid and it was somewhere in the city? Sora released his face from his grip, and crumbled the piece of parchment in his hand, clenching his teeth as he did so.

“We’ll find them, Sora,” Goofy patted his shoulder. Sora looked up at him, forgetting that he and Donald were sitting on either side of him. They too had felt the guilt that was brought upon them. It was stupid to leave Kairi unattended, and it was worse to believe that Aseles would be fine on her own after her injuries. It was poor strategy planning, just a bad idea to travel from such a recovery. He hoped she was alright.

“Yeah, we just need to find the staff that they want,” Donald nodded, “It’s our best chance.”

“How can we exchange a staff for them that we can’t find?” Sora groaned slightly, rubbing his forehead. He stood up finally, and he nearly jumped when he felt Aladdin grip his shoulder tightly. The male had removed and lost some of his gown during the brawl, but the man was more relieved to find Jasmine and the rest of his companions safe with Genie. Iago although seemed to be missing. The group concluded the bird must have fled during the fight, and the Sultan and Jasmine volunteered to go into the city to tend to the wounded with Genie.

“It has to be here, or else they would have not left the note,” Aladdin’s voice solidified their confidence. His eyes darted around the destroyed room, “We just have to look harder. C’mon Sora, we’re not giving up.”

“Right, you’re right!” Sora hurriedly nodded to himself, hitting his own chest and stuffing the note in his pocket. He had to convince himself to get out of this bad brew of an attitude, “We need to get them back, staff or no staff if we don’t find it.”

“That’s the plan!” Aladdin gave a grin, and the group of four began to disperse with the help of the few amount of guards left. They turned up columns, removed broken crates and lifted stone, Sora now hoping whatever staff this was did not get destroyed in the battle. They scavenged the floor in swift movements, pushing and rolling the few pieces of treasure and gifts that were left. The sun outside was providing enough light to give them help, but in a matter of an hour, it would begin to set. Sora guessed that their deal would not hold up until the next morning. The group hurriedly dispersed to separate rooms of the Palace, but Sora was already winded a third way of the search. The sunlight began to cower and sink into the shadows of the afternoon and the group had to recollect in the main lobby of the Palace for further instruction.

“I couldn’t find it,” Donald expelled out, gripping his chest from the constant running back and forth.

“There is no such object in the treasury either,” one guard of the Sultan claimed, the four others nodding in approval of his statement. Sora was getting desperate-

“Iago!” Aladdin called out. Clinging onto the stick in Iago’s talons was Abu, the monkey frantically calling out. Aladdin raised a brow, quite sure he left the monkey to Carpet and Genie with Jasmine. Abu landed onto Aladdin’s head as Iago lowered himself to fly eye-level, the bird obviously exhausted from the flight it must’ve taken to flee the scene.

“Where were you Iago?” Goofy questioned and pushed his arm out for Iago to rest on. The bird took the offer, and gripped onto Goofy’s shoulder, trying to make use of his gasping words.

“I-we-Abu—flying really fast-oh jeez-“ Iago heaved out, flapping his wing down to his lower body. Before Sora could realize it, Aladdin took notice almost automatically, and reached for the object in Iago’s possession.

“A staff!” Aladdin held it up in his hand, gladly relieving Iago of the burden, “You saved it!”

“Saved it? I was trying to take it for myself, and the monkey kept telling me to bring it back. What is this piece of junk, anyways?” Iago confessed, recollecting his breath. Suddenly, the light from outside the walls died, and a bright, blue gleam began to radiate from Aladdin’s palm.

Aladdin quickly let go of the staff, backing up as the object began to hover in space by its own will. Sora, Donald and Goofy looked at one another, puzzled of the sudden transformation of the staff’s crest at the top. The gold and emerald colors of it began to shine fiercely, and abruptly the scene was exploding in brilliant light. Everyone squinted their eyes, hurrying to the open garden of the Palace. Sora’s eyes shot up, and his mouth nearly dropped from what he was seeing; a woman mage was being pixelated from the staff’s center, a ghost or a spirit of sorts. Her entire body towered that of the entire city of Agrabah, almost barricading it into her own night. Her voice hummed out in such a tone that it sent the grass breezing in its place. Aladdin neared closer, and the woman instinctively looked upon his approach first before looking to Iago.

“Your questions are mine to answer. The king of thieves sought my sight to find the ultimate treasure,” the woman nearly bellowed in her low tone.

“What is that?” Donald tugged at Sora’s jacket, but the brunette merely shook his head.

“The king of thieves...the one in the blue robes,” Aladdin quickly connected, rubbing against the ribs that had taken a beating earlier from the said description of man.

“What treasure??” Donald instinctively called out, already rubbing his hands together. Both Sora and Goofy jabbed their elbows against his ribs, silencing the duck. However, the oracle leaned her head down, and gazed to the white duck carefully.

“I am bound by the rule of one. One question, one answer,” the galactic woman replied out. “I see all that has been, and all that will be. You have but to ask.”

“Sora, it’s your chance,” Aladdin quickly turned over, though his eyes went behind him. Jasmine and the others had arrived from their trip to the city, the Sultan immediately mesmerized of the sight of the oracle before them.

“Aladdin, what’s going on?” Jasmine went ahead, and hugged his arm. Aladdin smiled to reassure her everything was fine, but cut his eyes to Sora again.

“You can find out where Aseles and Kairi are,” Aladdin continued. Sora nodded quickly, and walked ahead to gain the attention of the oracle. However, her smile instantly faded, and her hands extended out, fingers drawn out like elegant wings.

“Keybearer of the Worlds, what is the question you wish for me to answer?” the decorated priestess questioned gracefully.

“I need to know where my friends were taken,” Sora called out, his hands in tight fists, “by the thieves.”

“All you need to do is ask...”

“Where were my friends taken?” Sora redirected his question. The woman leisurely turned herself over, and her long arm extended out into the distance of where the sun would be setting, “Follow the trail of the forty thieves, and there you shall be able to rescue your friends; however, the party of five combatants will soon depart, and you must hurry before they disappear into another world from here.” A small indication of light began to radiate out, and in small glimmers of light began to lead into the direction of the runaway thieves. “It is possible to rescue all three who have been kidnapped.”

“Wait, three?” Sora narrowed his eyes, tilting his head quizzically to the woman. “Who is the third?”

“I can only answer one question. You have already been served,” the woman respectfully bowed her head.

“Then uh, who is the third person?” Goofy asked instead, gaining everyone’s attention before they all averted back to the oracle.

The female laced her fingers together, and began to draw out her digits to reveal a silk curtain in front of her, “A man who has been long forgotten.” In the surface of her vision was shown a man....but who it was....

“Aladdin....he looks like you,” Jasmine cut in sharply, inhaling her breath too soon. Sora’s eyes widened, and he had to look back and forth to see that the two resembled much of each other, minus the graying beard the man had.

“No, that’s impossible,” Aladdin shook his head, teeth gritting, “My mother died when I was young...surely my father did as well.”

“Al...I don’t think that’s the case,” Genie stood on two feet, and held is palm against Aladdin’s back. “How can you be so sure?”

“All you need to do....is ask,” the woman oracle hummed out once more.

Sora went to Aladdin’s other side, gripping his arm, “If your father is alive, maybe we can rescue all of them at once! Don’t leave it to chance, Aladdin. You don’t know how he got there.”

“What kind of man leaves his son?” Aladdin abruptly cut in, making Sora and Genie draw their hands away. “Why should I ask, then?”

Jasmine slipped in front behind, and she curled her fingers within Aladdin’s, “Because you want to.” This gained Aladdin’s attention, and his hardened demeanor was shattered, revealing that not of puzzlement, but grief. The time was ticking, both Sora and Aladdin knew that. Sora, however, waited and did not pressure his friend. This was a serious and sensitive matter, one he was all too knowledgeable about.

It reminded him much of how Aseles had to deal with Ansem’s hefty leave, and at times he wondered himself if the man really passed by the way she sometimes talked about him. She did not know much about him...but that equally was worse of having him not be there for her. All the same....Sora knew what she would ask if she were here...

“If....Aseles was here, Aladdin,” Sora began, making the male look to him slowly, “She would think it’s a good idea to know if that’s your father.” Aladdin frowned, and gripped onto the front of his own robes tightly, battling his assumptions. He appeared to be debating himself heavily, and once Sora thought he was going to say no-

“Is my father alive?” Aladdin called out to the oracle. The vision of the man dispersed, and the woman collected her fingers straight; her arms extended out like a towering, relaxed bird. Her robes softly blew in the wind, and her eyes shimmered brightly of the plain color they held.

“You father is well alive, yet he is trapped in the shackles of a rogue path, and must be reminded of what it means to have a family once more. Only then will he change his course; you must act with haste.”

“You can’t pass this up, Aladdin. You have to go,” Jasmine indicated swiftly.

“But…that means leaving you,” Aladdin stared at her bleakly, sighing of the sudden change of events.

Jasmine smiled, cradling his face in one hand, “I’ll be here when you return. You must help rescue our friends.”

“I-“ Aladdin gently wrapped his fingers around her palm. He was hesitant.

“What do you want to do, Aladdin?” Sora reaffirmed, standing beside Jasmine with Donald and Goofy at his side. The seconds ticked by, but once Aladdin lifted his gaze to Jasmine, he replied with boldness and certitude.

“I’ll be back soon, Jasmine. I promise.”

KAIRI’S POV:

She was finally able to relieve herself of the ropes around her wrists, seething as she rubbed them sympathetically with her soft digits. She began to shake Aseles to and fro, but her methods to wake up her proved useless. Whatever she was contaminated with, not even a potion or ether could wake her up enough. Had she fallen into another coma?

“Aseles! ASELES! We have to go!” Kairi whispered urgently, the edges of her eyes watering. Her hair pressed against the side of her face in sweat from how hot the cave had gotten. As if the air were not circulating enough in her lungs, as if this place were an oven, preventing her from thinking rationally.  They had to leave together, they just had to.

“No…Sora, where are you?” Kairi pressed her face in her hands, quite lost of Aseles’ order to her.

She...she had to escape without her, despite not liking the idea at all. Aseles knew of the consequences of staying that she would rather have Kairi escape than keep her here with her.

Kairi’s violet eyes shifted upwards to the top crevice of the boulder, but it was too thin to make a sly escape. Her eyes then moved to the back end, but there was nothing but a structured slab of rock containing her inside. Her stomach churned disagreeably, but Kairi composed herself with gripping the charm of her star in her pocket. She had to devise an escape attempt, accepting the fact that the entrance was the only way out.

She mustered her courage, and Kairi screamed piercingly into the air, letting her lungs out as loud as they could. The small rush of footsteps reassured her the guards were just outside, but she readied herself, flashing her keyblade in hand. She shut her eyes as the cracked, open side of the boulder now proved an opportunity.

“I’m sorry, Aseles,” Kairi inhaled, and charged forward. She sprinted, practically flew her thin figure easily through the gap in a perfect fit. She swung her weapon in hand, and knocked down the unexpected Sub in her way. He fell with a heavy and unexpected grunt, seething as Kairi stepped over him and accidentally kicked his side.

“SHE’S RUNNING!” Kairi did not stop, zipping across the open area like a swift runner. The hues of the room blazed past her like tossed fire, the figures in the cave now animating to life. There were far more people than she had expected to be around, but that did not stop her from going around the rocky bend to the open area of boulders and craters.

“Haah!” A tight grip slapped onto her.

“Let go!” Kairi shouted defiantly, and she swung her keyblade behind her. She knocked back the bandit who attempted to toss her back. She was loose once more, and her eyes fetched to the pool of water that proved to be the exit of the cave. Something blasted in front of Kairi, and she coughed heavily into her arm to deflect out the smoke bomb that was thrown to prevent her from escaping.

“We have her!” the sound of dashing footsteps and unsheathing swords alarmed Kairi greatly, but there was no way she was going out without a fight. She used the bomb as a diversion, and circled her keyblade like a windmill, just the way Aseles had taught her. The smoke began to rise and expand, making the surrounding bandits in her area move back from the defense. This was it, this was her chance-

“Don’t let her get away!” Chad’s voice boomed into the cave, making Kairi whimper of how hard it sounded. She flashed her keyblade out of view, and sprinted to the pool at the end. She held her breath and dove, the cold rush of water almost making her gasp in the water. She clawed her way down the bottom bed of rocks like a born mermaid, guiding her through the trail they had taken just earlier to head inside. It was insanely dark, Kairi quickly calling her keyblade back to shed her light of her travel. At the tip she cast the best Aero spell she could muster, aiding her with air when she needed it.

She continued on swimming until she could finally see the roof of rock gone. She kicked upwards, and crashed through the surface while clinging to the wall tightly. She shivered greatly from how close her clothes stuck to her skin, her lungs inhaling her strength to keep on moving. They would not stop until they had her again; she had to create distance.

Her eyes caught sight of the shore, grimacing of how far it laid. She couldn’t waste time, and began to swim as best as she could; she had to save Aseles. She had to get to the others quickly.

CHAD’S POV:

The boiling fits of rage were pulsing in his arms, he was sure his blood cells were exploding every passing second of his ruined plans.

“Why did you attack my bandits?!” Cassim glared upon the dark-haired, elder teen. Chad had about this old man’s lectures. Who was he to lecture when he did no better about finding the staff in the first place?

Chad scoffed in annoyance, cracking his knuckles in his grip, “Your pesky bandits almost cost me my head! We specifically stated that those two are not supposed to be wounded in any way, and your stupid bandits charged to take her on. If she’s dead, then I’m dead, and then you’re _all_ dead,” Chad hissed, walking away from the man and heading toward the entrance of the cave. Behind them he glowered at the pool of water of the sea, his cool demeanor completely undone. His lesser subordinates formally stood in a line, all looking ahead with their hoods removed.

He approached the male with long hair, a growl escaping Chad’s lips, “I placed you and the girl to keep watch….care to explain?”

The male swallowed vigorously, but replied, “The girl screamed, so we suspected she had been wounded.”

Chad licked his front teeth, and nodded, still holding his fist in one hand, “Understandable. Though-“ Chad suddenly let out a blow, and the boy fell to the ground in agony, gripping his jaw tightly. He groaned in agony, the streak of blood running along his teeth. The girl beside him stepped to the side a bit, trembling.

“Now, wouldn’t you think it was a stupid decision to just let her run past, hm?” Chad raised an eyebrow, heading over to the girl. He automatically gripped her hair like a grappling hook, making her wince of the sudden charge. She grimaced, her fingers flexing to snatch at Chad’s arm, but she second guessed herself to make a move to her leader.

“Y-Yes, but she was too quick. We didn’t suspect she-“

“She’d run??” Chad pulled the back of the girl’s hair, making her look at the ceiling. She gasped in fright, trying to stand on wobbling feet. Her dark eyes looked fearfully at Chad, holding his wrist as a reaction to his violent act. The other two stood still, their eyes shifting toward the two in silent, withdrawn remorse.

After a few seconds, Chad let go  and the girl strongly gripped her head, rubbing it fully to sooth the throb. The boy that had been punched stood as well with shaking palms, making Chad scoff at his poor attempt to keep himself composed. Chad headed back toward Cassim, who rightfully glared at Chad.

“From this point, we will head separate ways. With the other girl gone, there’s no further use to be allies.”

“By all means, leave my hideout. I don’t see why I should house such pathetic, senseless fighters such as you,” Cassim boomed from beneath his robes.

“We take our leave. The girl,” Chad announced, and his two, obedient peers proceeded to the cave where Aseles lay. As they retrieved her, the bandits suddenly surrounded the group. Chad’s eyes moved to and fro, taking a step back. An angry scoff rang out of his mouth.

“You won’t be leaving with the girl. She stays with us. I want my staff,” Cassim announced bitterly, drawing out the scimitar at his waist. The fire in the cave flickered dangerously, delving the shadows of everyone’s face deeper in contrast.

“Ha, as if we’ll leave her with the likes of you. She serves an important purpose for us, one that will grant us powers unimaginable, out of your world,” Chad retorted sternly. He reached back, and found Aseles’ body dangling at the inside of his arm, her hands and feet practically meeting the ground with her flexibility. Her hair hung loosely around her face, and her dress was pulled upward at the sides, exposing the black jumpsuit around her thighs. She was not thin; girl had some meat in her bones to hold that keyblade powerfully whenever she flashed it out.

“You won’t be leaving with our only trade-off,” Cassim stood firmly on his feet, and his bandits seemed to have taken it as an order to charge. They did so, but the Subs held their positions. One second, they had all been jumped upon, and the next, they all flew into the air, hitting the ground roughly. The keyblades Chad’s group possessed were spun accordingly into tight circles to create a fiery hold of wind. The thrown bodies created a passageway, and the five immediately headed to a pair of stairs at the other side of the cave. Chad took the lead while his four supporters held back the charging armada with Cassim in tow and in the lead. With ease, Chad took two steps at a time while holding onto Aseles secured in his grip.

As he reached the final step, he felt the blowing wind with the darkness of the night consuming him. He headed over to the edge of the platform he stood on, peering down to the heavy waters below. Their portal of escape was in the opposite direction, toward the Cave of Wonders as he had been informed.

“What are the orders?” one male had approached, and the other three followed having bought them a few seconds.

“We jump. Create a trail,” Chad flipped Aseles over, her body over his shoulder now with her legs clamped tightly in his arm. “Ladies first.” The two females took their keyblade in stances, and they leapt over the edge. Chad and the two males swiftly looked behind to see the fleet of bandits sprinting to them, but they wasted no time to follow the girls. Their feet skidded down the surface of rock, almost gliding like ice-skaters. As the bottom of the cliff were jagged rocks, but Chad was not too worried when the girls leapt off the ground, and raised their keyblades toward the water.

A storm of ice coated the surface, and all five landed heavily onto the slab of stone. Chad grunted from the extra weight with him, but was quick to stand and gracefully glide across the ice slab. The two girls took the lead once more, pointing their keyblades in the direction to shore with the continuous spray of ice.  Once there, Chad chuckled and turned, seeing Cassim was glaring from the top of the mountain’s platform.

Suddenly, the front entrance of the cavern began to open, and Chad’s smile dropped to see a group was running in their direction...but not the group he was hoping for. Sora and his friends had arrived, accompanied with the fled redhead. The Arabian prince had flown inside the cavern with the magical carpet of his; Cassim was going to be in for a treat.

“STOP!” the brunette leader Sora shouted in retaliation, and took the lead like an enraged bull.

“Oh, I’m afraid not, gents! I came to get what I wanted, and I am not leaving without my prize!” Chad motioned with a casual wave of his hand, “Take care of them.” His four followers took a stand, immediately blocking the view of the charging group. Sora and his meddling gang all took hot pursuit with weapons charging, but Chad had a better matter to attend to.

He took his leave immediately, and speedily cut across the sandy dunes of the desert, recollecting the coordinates for the Cave of Wonders. The night began to roll into the scenery, and Chad used it as a means of hiding his tracks; surely, the group would not know where he was headed to.

The run was beginning to catch wind of his training, and Chad had to slow to a walk when he finally came to the vicinity of the carved head of rock. The fierce eyes and opened jaw was anything but unwelcoming, Chad careful to climb up over the side of the left jowl and already knowing the stories of the many people who had gone to never return back out. But if he was correct, the old man had enchanted the cave enough to get him in and out as quickly as possible. He inhaled the cool air inside as he walked down the steps, feeling the cavern hum and groan to life. The halls and floor began to lighten in golden fashions and tones, but Chad’s eyes did not travel among the heavy treasures the cave offered. Instead he paid mind to the mumbling lass in his arm, feeling her ribs and arms beginning to stutter in movement. Hah, the girl could simply not make a valid motion to repel him.

“Looks like the princess is finally waking up,” Chad grinned, securing his hold around her waist.

ASELES’S POV:

The limbs within her cracking skin were nothing but a combination of hardened glue, and cracked clay. Nothing felt firm, and the atmosphere around was somehow obscured, as if looking into the water with one eye. It was very difficult to pay attention to one certain thing, other than the throbbing sensation at the middle of her forehead, and the sole purpose of breathing. It hurt to blink, but she could not stop from doing so to try to wake herself up. She felt the swatting of her hair itch and tickle her face while strands were stuck and dug into the corners of her dry mouth. She was unable to swallow without wincing and coughing out whatever was in her system. Her lungs felt mute, but all the crying in her mind could not be silenced of where she was being taken to.

She squinted her vision to finally clarify the ground, but when she saw it, it was most unpleasant; she was in the Cave of Wonders; she recognized the material and designs laid along the edges of the walkways, but why was she here? The air was humid, but she felt the sudden, brief rush of wind against her face. She was being adjusted, and her upper body began to slip off and drop from the shoulder she had been carried on. Her back met against the hard wall of stone, and her chin was lifted with a firm callous hand. The entire motion of the world stopped when she saw it was those pair of dark eyes inspecting her.

Aseles gritted her teeth, weakly moving her face away from his clenching fingers. He let her go, however, but continued to crouch before her. His knees were bent in front, the soles of his feet perfectly balancing him like a graced ballerina. His head tilted in a curious deposition, and his fingers patted the side of her face playfully to wake her up...or annoy her.

“Should’ve given you a stronger dosage,” Chad started, “Would have slept like a baby.”

“Where...are you taking me...?” Aseles growled out. She tried to shift her legs, but she could barely feel the tingling of her toes and fingers. She felt like such a doll, being so incapacitated to make a move.

“You’re probably wondering…what is going to happen to you,” Chad began, “I know you’re not as dense as the redhead, you know where you are.” There was roughly a presence of power and broadness Chad was emitting, angering Aseles that much further. If she could only move, she would most definitely kick his face in.

“So, Aseles, I have a job to finish, and it just so happens that someone is really dying to meet you,” Chad reached, making Aseles wince from how quick he pulled her head back. Her neck craned, and she huffed at his sneering grin. “It did not matter if the redhead escaped. I didn’t want her....I wanted you.”

Aseles blinked rapidly, and she gritted her teeth, “N-No...I am of...no use to you!”

Chad chuckled ominously, the shadows of his eyes brimming with the golden specks in his dark obscurity for eye, “Of course you are. Why must you insist on insulting yourself, Aseles?” She tried so hard to upright herself, but all that she was able to exert was a groan, and she fell onto her side. Her fingers twitched, but it was not enough to call her keyblade out to aid her. She felt Chad’s prying hands reach, and he made her sit up again, directing her face in his direction. His fingertips clamped onto her jaw, rotating her head easily to and fro to observe her.

“Tsk tsk, Aseles. I don’t like your manners at all,” Chad’s accent rolled into her ears, and she cringed from how close his vocals were.

“I’m going to kick your ass,” Aseles scowled with dagger eyes.

Chad laughed at her threat, and did not let her go from his grip, “Is that a promise? I do like a match, but I believe it would be quite unfair for you, lass. You can hardly pick up her head to look at me properly.”

“Whatever it is you’re planning, I won’t do it!” Aseles retaliated, but her annoyed glare seemed to fuel Chad’s amusement much further.

“Oh but you see, you really don’t have a choice,” Chad opened his free palm forward, his fingers extending out as if he were encasing a ball in them, “When you get there, you will feel such a power unlike any other. You will feel immense, wide, suffocating. It’s torment that is everlasting, and you always want more of it!”

“What are you talking-“ she winced, Chad’s grip on her suddenly increased. His thumb dug beneath her jaw, making her gasp.

“What we have in store for you...it’s going to be so beautiful,” Chad whispered lustfully out. Aseles cringed at the sudden tone of his voice, staring up to him to see his eyes look longingly, boring into hers. Her eyes widened to see him caress her face with his eyes, and for a moment....she knew she was no longer talking to Chad. This was someone else...entirely different.

His fingers glided along her throat, and snatched at the back of her neck, “So so beautiful, Aseles that you will hate yourself for not having it before. You will forget everyone and everything, and find yourself with a new purpose. We will show you what that’s like. You have no idea how excited I am to show you.” Aseles squirmed to fight back, but Chad had easily picked her up and was carrying her like a child in his arms. His hand reached to comb her hair back, but the shocking horror in her expression was solid when he grazed his fingers across her face, pushing off the strands in such a delicate manner it unsettled her.

“We are going to show you your true potential. You are going to thank me.”

The red flags all shot out in her head, and them walking deeper into the cave did not help the situation further. Aseles was hurriedly trying to regain feeling in her body. She shook terribly in Chad’s tight wrap, and could not stand the idea of going wherever he was going to take her. She had to regain movement, she had to reunite with the others. They knew where she was, right? They had to know, they had to!

“I don’t know what it is you’re planning, but you can count me out!” Aseles argued in an attempt to slow his trek. However, he didn’t seem bothered to talk to her while continuing his stride. Crap, no no no. “And what did you mean ‘we’? Who is _we_??”

Chad’s demeanor resurfaced, and he looked to her somewhat annoyed, “You’ll find out soon enough.”

“What’s in it for you? How is my kidnapping going to benefit someone like you? I’m nothing, I’m no one,” Aseles countered, but Chad was firm in his grip. In fact, Aseles felt like he tightened it, making her worry.

“On the contrary, you are everything that is needed to take the war further,” Chad merely stated as if lecturing her the wonders of the worlds. “I do not know why, but it is you and what harbors in that furtive mind of yours. Whatever is lurking in there will soon be opened.” Yeah, that did not sound good at all.

“Whoever sent you is manipulating you,” Aseles tried again, her eyes widening to see they were passing the Treasure Room, the keyhole room up ahead now. Were they going to transport through the keyhole? No, Sora had sealed it, why would it be open??

“Who is to say you’re not being manipulated as well?” Chad’s voice lowered, his head leaning down as if to discuss to her an elaborate plan of sorts. Aseles met his eyes, swallowing roughly of how the golden specks twinkled and vibrated in Chad’s eyes. In them she could see her reflection, and she was taken aback by how broken she looked in his grips. Her hair was frazzled and scrunched in random places, and the sand somewhat bled into her cheeks to give her a freckled tone.

“A mere child of Ansem the Wise, or so I am told, who harbors a calculated and perfect program in your head that has the power and strength of a thousand men, but holds the heart of a little girl who does not know how to keep her hands from the cookie jar.” Chad had stopped now, and carefully placed Aseles down onto the ground on the middle mound of the cavern. Aseles felt her limp form curve, her eyes shooting up to stare at Chad who towered over her. His eyes casted to the keyhole platform, and Aseles watched in anticipation when he reached the top. Chad spread his arms open, looking to Aseles with grandeur of the display.

“You see, Aseles,” Chad motioned to the keyhole with an extended arm, “You can be manipulated into doing the _right_ things. How do you know they harbor the best intentions for you, when your secrets and story lie in the darkest pit of your mind. They will not be shed to the light; you must seek them inside the Darkness. There is where your answers lay.” Aseles gritted her teeth, seeing Chad turn to face the keyhole. He worshiped it with greedy eyes, a giant smirk rising along his lips.

“Let me show you, let me show you what awaits you, Aseles! Do not fear something that is already tied deep into your core!” This impersonating Chad continued to talk, but Aseles had finally managed to sit up, and drew out her keyblade silently in her lap. She attempted to stand herself up with it, knowing her best shot to recover was to reach the potion in her pocket. She was too exhausted and drained to properly call a State in her condition. She had to move her hands. She had to do it _now._

Chad was possessed, she knew too well of the circumstances that must have befallen him. It was another Riku, another her; one who flew too close to the sun, and never came back.

“Let it ravish and grow; accept what is a part of you as is a part of the worlds! Darkness brings true form, while Light blinds and distorts your senses.” The clatter of a glass bottle rung into the air, Chad swiftly turning back to direct his gaze to Aseles. Her body staggered a bit, but her fingers now gripped onto the handle of her keyblade. The green potion ran down the sides of her mouth, having tried the best she could to drink it.

“Light is what saves you from the night. If there were no Light, there would be no hope, no dreams, no awakening from this Darkness you talk so much about!” Aseles retorted, coughing twice to clear her lungs. Chad mused a crooked grin, and hopped down from the platform. His body bent downward, and it was there Aseles saw the curved blades he had earlier attached to the sides of his outer legs. With a quick swipe, they reattached to the binds of his forearms and wrists like magnets, his arms solid at his sides and his stride approaching her ever so quickly.

Aseles readied herself, holding her keyblade defensively in front, “Darkness is not the only thing in the worlds!”

“It will eventually be the only thing you think about!” Chad slammed his blades in unison, knocking Aseles suddenly to the ground. She grunted heavily, but quickly rolled out of the way to dodge his kick. She stumbled onto her feet, but Chad was not one to play fair; he dashed forward, and skidded his blades against the neck of her keyblade, erupting the harsh clanging into the air.

“You will either come with me unscathed or in a cast!” Chad threatened, but Aseles swiftly cut across his blade, the head of her weapon meeting his. A sprout of ice stormed out, Chad having ducked his head and swiping his foot agilely beneath her. Aseles was airborne, and she cried out when her back slammed onto the ground. She rolled onto her side, the tears of agony forming at the edges of her eyes. She gasped inaudibly, feeling Chad picked her up from the front of her dress, almost tearing it in his fingers. He began to forcefully drag her, but had to deflect the oncoming head of her keyblade. Chad gripped it to block it, his blood tainting the sharp edge rather than letting her go. He yanked at her chest, and slammed Aseles against the wall of the platform, right beneath where the keyhole lay. Her weapon clattered out of her hand, her lungs gasping in the air she desperately needed to stay awake. Everything rammed into her back, the pain intensifying as Chad pushed her against the hard surface.

“Such a foolish girl, you think you can escape the fate chosen for you?” Chad breathed onto her face, making Aseles hold her breath from how close he was.

“I choose my future, no one else!” Aseles spat back, unapologetic to spitting at his face in the process.

“So sorry dear, your request has been denied!” The area above them suddenly burst into life, and Aseles shot her eyes up to see that the area was darkening. A portal had been opened, and she immediately panicked when she felt Chad’s arm ensnare her arms against her. Her body lifted, and Aseles began to scream in retaliation, trying to break away from his grasp.

“STOP!” The doors at the end of the room slammed open, a group of footsteps hurrying inside the cave. Aseles whirled her head around to catch four figures, her hair concealing their upper bodies from view. However, Chad now leapt to the top of the platform, and completely ignored Sora’s demand.

“No, let go of me!” Aseles kicked violently.

“DUCK!” Donald’s voice cried out, and  Aseles immediately weighted her body, causing Chad to drop her slightly. A sharp growl echoed in the chamber, but Aseles rolled her body off the hot platform, and right over the edge. She hit the ground hard, the sand splashing among her face and front. She made an attempt to stand up, but her back was kicked down, making her inhale painfully. Her eyes flickered up to see Chad had regained his posture, and was standing protectively in front of her. His blades brimmed with anticipation, a cocky sneer rising on his lips. The side of his neck was tainted red from the scorched flames, delivered from Sora’s strike raid.

“Came to join in the fun, wielder?” Chad scowled crossly. Sora stood in front of the group, keyblade brimming with his clothes adorned in a red coat of color.

His eyes targeted straight to Chad, but then quickly shot to Donald, Goofy and Kairi who stood readily behind him, “Get Aseles!”

“Step lively!” Chad openly spat out, “Come and get her!”

The scene burst into chaos, Donald and Goofy splitting up with Sora taking the charge. Chad met him in the center, but the dark-haired male was faster in reflexes. Sora was skidded back, allowing Chad to charge toward Donald who was only a couple of feet away from Aseles.

“Not so fast,” Chad mocked, and he sent his blades across. Donald’s deflected with a shield, but it cracked after Chad’s blade cut straight down the center of it. Suddenly the duck was airborne, Aseles trying her best to get up quickly and make her attempted escape. Her eyes locked onto  Goofy who was next approaching, but Donald’s flinging body tossed the comrade back, the two skidding across the ground.  
“Aseles!” Her eyes shot ahead, seeing Kairi was now fast approaching with Chad being halted and preoccupied with an offensive Sora. The two bashed their weapons effectively against one another, but they were evened out that Aseles was heavily unsure who had the advantage.

“Here, hold onto my arm,” Kairi knelt before Aseles, the brunette unhesitating to take her aid. The two struggled to keep her upright, but Aseles was relieved to feel her legs again. Kairi fumbled with her pocket, and pulled out a hi-potion for Aseles to drink. She popped open the cork, and Aseles hastily drank it.

“Let’s get you out!” Kairi insisted.

“Donald and Goofy!” Aseles breathed out, hitting her chest to make the liquid sink faster into her. The two looked over, seeing Donald and Goofy had recuperated, making Aseles sigh in relief.

“Go, leave!” Sora pushed Chad back, darting his eyes straight to the group. He spun his keyblade rapidly in hand, aiming his attention back to Chad who was back on his feet. Once more they charged and clanged, Chad’s blades singing and humming from the brute force of Sora’s slashes. Chad kept his place firm, but what made Aseles uneasy was the large, sinister grin on his face.

“Let’s go!” Donald gripped onto his wand, motioning with an arm to follow. Aseles kept in place though, her eyes widening at the size of the portal that was still forming. Why hadn’t it gone away? Chad’s attempts to take her failed, so why….did- OH NO.

“SORA!” Aseles cried out, “Let’s go!”

“Get out of the cave!” Sora argued back, too preoccupied with Chad’s kicks. “I’ll catch up!”

“Aseles, we have to go!” Goofy urged worriedly, trying to tug her arm.

Aseles kept herself firm, shaking her head to make sense of her words, “No you don’t understand, we have to get Sora out! Chad’s egging him on!” She snared Donald’s attention, and there, the duck realized what she was finally talking about. Yet, the same moment the realization kicked in, a loud shout echoed and ran against the walls. Aseles turned with the others, and the sight was nothing short of a nightmare. Chad has managed to pin Sora against the ground, foot against his stomach with blade in front of his face. The dark portal loomed over the duo, almost thundering of the tension built within in. The next instant, dark threads shot down, and surrounded Sora’s trapped form. The brunette clenched his teeth, and his cries of distress were all too horrific to hear.

“Sora!” Kairi shouted, ready to take a sprint, but Aseles beat her too it. Goofy gripped onto the redhead’s arm, the trio watching anxiously and fearfully of the turn of circumstances unfolding before them. Chad had deceived them; he wanted Sora all along.

“No! Sora!” Aseles shouted defiantly, keyblade ready in hand. Chad grinned at her approach, and stood at Sora’s side. Before she could reach the two, the floor exploded upwards in a dark eruption, bolts of purple electricity encasing the ground and ceiling. Aseles immediately backed away, gasping rapidly from the amount of force that was nearly suffocating her.

“This is much better, isn’t it?” No. No, it couldn’t be. It could _not_ be-

Aseles’ eyes slowly lifted, her entire frame shaking from the recognition of that voice. The sand and smoke began to settle, but a dark haze traveled among the cavern’s floor. Aseles exhaled sharply when she saw Sora’s body still on the ground…but her eyes caught sight of the extra pair of legs aside from Chad’s. They were textured in dark material, reds and blue hues snaked around the male’s torso, waist and arms. Aseles’ eyes began to rise, and they froze onto the twined face of Sora.

The dark locks of hair stood out longer than Sora’s cut ones, and the golden, murky coins fixated onto Aseles intently. She swallowed, feeling her keyblade trembling in her grip. No, how the hell- how was he able to get out? That portal, whoever opened it-

“Now what do we have here?” Aseles instantly jumped in fright, and could not look away from the figure that had appeared unexpectedly before her. Her entire frame shook, and she could not push away Vanitas’ gliding hand from her jaw. She breathed uneasily, her lungs rocky to regain a steady motion of life. Vanitas on the other hand seemed delighted of their reunion, and tucked a strand behind her ear.

“My, my, trying to be the hero again??” Vanitas chuckled, entrapping Aseles in his tight circle. She quickly swung her keyblade across, but the neck of her keyblade was swiftly gripped, and twisted to curl her hand in the keyblade’s grip. Aseles cried out sharply, the front of her body pressed against Vanitas’. A low hum drew out of the male’s chest, making Aseles inhale unsteadily.

“What did we discuss about last time, hmm? Did you not learn your lesson?” Vanitas’ whispered gruffly into her ear. He simply snapped her keyblade back, and Aseles cried out horribly, feeling all the fingers in her hand crack simultaneously. She hunched her head forward, the tears from her broken fingers now streaming down the sides of her cheeks. Her chest huffed greatly, and her entire exterior shook visibly for everyone to see. Vanitas tossed her keyblade aside like a toy, and it rattled horribly in Aseles ringing ears. Vanitas leaned his body against hers, the two now facing one another with Vanitas cradling her like she were an injured child. Aseles inhaled her tears, panting erratically from the tearing ligaments in her digits.

Vanitas rested his arm onto her shoulder, and she felt the patting of her head from his palm from behind. His face leaned, and his white pearls pierced into her sight like a deranged, hungry shark. She tried her best to not scream, shout or breathe, knowing that any move would be her undoing.

His forehead practically leaned against hers, and his voice droned with a hint of dark humor, “Now the real fun begins.” She did not feel him let go, despite seeing him back away and step over Sora’s groaning and squirming body. Vanitas took a look to him, and scoffed, “See you soon, roommate.” Chad’s mirthful, bubbling laughter entered the cave, and the two jumped up to the platform. The portal began to drain from the light, and in a matter of three seconds it closed, leaving the entire group alone and distraught.

Aseles’ teeth chattered from how close Vanitas was, and tried her best to move her attention to Sora regaining consciousness. She wobbled over uncertainly with bleeding fingers, the ground swaying and watery under her feet. All feeling from her fingers was now gone, Sora’s warmth diminished and gone from her touch.

“Sora, Sora, wake up,” Aseles urged, the uneasiness of her stomach now attempting to vomit whatever potions she had consumed the past hour. Sora stirred lightly, his eyes flickering to remain open in their limbo state. He seemed fine other than dazed, but she could only hope nothing was fractured in his mind. Carefully Aseles looked over, but the look on everyone’s face was something she was unprepared for. It was a mix of terror and concern washed and lingered on their faces, Kairi being the first to hurriedly pace over to kneel beside Aseles.

“We…h-have to get him out of here,” Aseles exhaled, attempting to compose her train of thought before it poured over the cliff’s side. “His other arm.” Kairi nodded without protest, and the two lifted Sora to his feet, gritting their teeth at his heavy weight of limbs. Behind his body lifted, and Aseles turned to see Goofy aid them with Donald drawing out his wand. A green aura fenced the group, Aseles able to feel her cuts and bruises seal and soften, and her fingers start to mend themselves in painfully slow twists and knits.

“Where do we go, Aseles?” Donald questioned from her free, left side, a stern but anxious hold along his eyes. Aseles sighed heavily, her eyes cutting to Sora’s hanging head,  and then ahead to help her lead the way out of the Cave of Wonders.

“Home. We’re heading back home.”

 

............................................................................................

 

_Well._

_Haha._

_........................................................_

_Isn’t this troublesome?_

_The wielder could not stand his own, and here you are again, saving him._

She was sleeping for so long, the deep pressures on her face creating forms from how her fingers sunk into her cheek to remain awake. She kept pulling in and out of sleep, watching the male brunette sleeping on the ground, his body at the end of the gummi ship’s wall. She nodded on and off, on and off.....She had to stay awake to watch him, rubbing her fingers tenderly in a motherly manner to forget what had happened.

She had to forget what had happened.

She had to stay strong.

She had to stay strong for all of them.

_Didn’t he promise you he was going to save you? Can you imagine what would have happened if Vanitas decided to play some tag with you?_

_Surely, you would be dead right now._

_Some hero he is._

_What are you going to do, Aseles?_

_Are you going to keep saving his ass?_

_You’re always one to run out of patience for things and people who can’t get things done._

 

She had to....stay strong for...herself.

 

_Oh, this shall be interesting._

 

FFW, RIKU’S POV:

“Is everything prepared?”

“When will they arrive?”

“Soon, we hope. Have his bed ready.”

“I hope he’s okay.”

Riku was rummaging as fast as he could across the pressed hall, down the stairs, bolting up the stairs, towels, water, potions and elixirs in hand. He effortlessly avoided bumping into Aerith and Leon, the three simultaneously darting across the hall to help assemble Sora’s bed. The entire Committee was set in anticipation for Sora’s gummi ship to return after receiving the call from their vessel. Axel and Yuffie awaited their arrival in the Great Maw.

Riku sat silently in his seat, with his elbows on the table and his hands holding his forehead in place. He knew...he knew that taking Kairi was a bad idea. He already had enough problems worrying about Aseles’ corrupted memory bank, and now Sora was affected by something no one else knew. Not much was mentioned in their video call, but the look on Aseles’ eyes told him she was withholding information, information only her and the group knew. No, it couldn’t be...did Sora’s Darkness disrupt their journey again? He could only speculate, but how much he wished he was wrong.

Unfortunately at their arrival, he was met with that same guess.

Sora was carried into the bed by Axel, and when laid Riku watched Aseles’ face for confirmation. They merely shared a glance, and Riku automatically knew what the problem was. He was ready to settle whatever Darkness Sora had in his body, or at least still it to stabilize it. However, when he neared Sora with Leon and Aerith at either side of him he froze, stunned in his tracks. Why could he not feel any Darkness emitting from him anymore?

Leon and Aerith began their work, Riku confident in their aid. His icy eyes watched as Donald and Goofy left downstairs with Axel, though Kairi and Aseles were waiting at the front of the door. When Riku made his presence known, Aseles looked to him automatically, though Kairi was too preoccupied at looking at Sora longingly for him to wake up fine. He must have been unconscious the entire trek to have her so worried. Was he unresponsive?

Riku took his chance, “We’ll talk in private.” Aseles followed behind him without objection, Riku having to tap Kairi’s shoulder to get her attention. She followed after a quick glance into the room, the two teens striding into Riku’s room at the end of the hall. The silver-haired fighter shut the door, locking it for good measure. He then turned to Aseles and Kairi.

Kairi held onto her chest tightly, seeming to prevent some form of cry or confession from escaping. Riku tried his best to not harden his stare, but he wanted answers, and he wanted them now. Instead he eyed Aseles who shared the same expression to combat against his assertiveness.

“What happened?” Riku instantly questioned, but he did not like what he was told.

After the journey summary, he tried his best to contain his anxiety, occasionally running his fingers through his hair or gripping his jaw to ease the tension there. Nothing was sound or pleasant to his ears, and when Aseles finished, he held onto Aseles who remained standing with Kairi sitting on the bed, her hands in between her thighs. She was withdrawn in her posture, and Riku knew she felt guilty about what had transpired.

“Vanitas is out,” Riku restated what Aseles had revealed to him.

“Yes,” Aseles grimaced at the name, soothing her fingers out with slight pressure. Her eyes kicked around the ground nervously, then lifted when Riku took a step closer. Her fingers seemed heavily bruised, causing Riku to question what might else had happened.

“Sora needs to recover. With someone like Vanitas out, we are unsure of what his motives are, especially Chad’s and whoever he hinted when he was with you.”

“It sounds like a good idea,” Aseles crossed her arms, biceps tensing. She nodded in affirmation.

“I’m glad everyone is safe, but it could have ended worse,” Riku reminded himself.  The mere thought of having one of them still captured agitated him greatly. He regarded Kairi, unable to withhold his brotherly instincts any longer, “Tell no one about this. Go to your room. We need to talk there.” Kairi languidly and sorrowfully raised herself to her feet, her eyes avoiding his. Aseles reached to comfort her arm, gaining Kairi’s glance.

“I’m sorry, about everything,” Kairi muttered, fighting back the tears that now threatened to drain out.

“Don’t worry,” was all Aseles managed to say. She patted Kairi’s back with her left hand, “We’ll check on Sora later, okay?” Kairi nodded, and began to lead herself out of Riku’s room, closing the door behind to trap Aseles with Riku now.

“You don’t have to be such a jerk,” Aseles cut in firmly, catching Riku’s darting eyes. “It’s not her fault this happened.”

“Do you think the events that unraveled merely happened coincidentally?” Riku placed is hands on his hips. Aseles did not look away, locking her fingers over her injured ones. “It may not be her fault this happened, but Kairi ends up being put in situations we don’t always expect when she’s out of our guard.”

“That doesn’t mean she needs to be treated like a caged bird-“

“You were against having her leave, and now you’re arguing to me about having her caged?” Riku cut her off, making Aseles grit her teeth.

“What happened _happened_. What matters is that she’s fine and she’s back. Relax already,” Aseles argued back, making Riku stay solid in his form. Aseles caught his defiance, and continued, “I don’t know what it is with you lately, but you’ve been nothing but obsessively vigilant the past week. Either you’re keeping something from us or you’re picking up a habit of being overly creepy.” Damn, how did she notice?

Riku made sure to make his attempts subtle yet concrete, the fear of Aseles’ memories unraveling all too great to let to chance now. He needed to see if she acted differently, or if any attempts were made to hinder her trace of thought.

“Do not make assumptions of things you don’t know about,” Riku fired back, the two now glaring at one another. He maneuvered to change the subject, and relaxed his expression to reel in Aseles, “Right now, our best chance is for Sora to heal, and come up with a strategy to fend off Vanitas if he were to ever step into your path again.” That line alone was enough to shatter Aseles’ defense, as if she were reminiscing something told to her.

She swallowed, rubbing the bud of her palm, “Agreed...”

Riku relaxed his shoulders, though his hands remained into fists, “We’ll talk more later then, when everyone else had gone to sleep.” Aseles agreed to his terms, and she maneuvered her way past him, bringing a soft breeze in her walk. She walked out the door, but didn’t bother to close it fully behind her. Riku sighed in disbelief, stretching his fingertips and thumb across his forehead. There he rubbed both of his temples, creasing his skin in lethargic motions to slow his thoughts.

What were the Substitutions planning with Vanitas? Riku could not say…but he was afraid things had taken a turn for the worst.

 

ASELES’ POV:

She sat in Merlin’s Study, tending to her fingers and wrapping them in the gauze Axel had provided for her. Her head thudded with a continuous beat, and she tried to rub it off with her palm. Still, the small clicking persisted on her forehead, and Aseles gave up on all peace of mind. She looked to the shelves of books, exhaling out with arms tense across her chest. Her leg bounced of being impatient, but Axel made notice of her nervousness.

“He’s going to be fine,” Axel reassured by patting the side of her knee with his knuckles. Aseles momentarily stopped her fidgeting before continuing again. Axel hummed with quirked lips, his upper body leaning forward with elbows on his erects knees.

“That’s not what I’m worried about.” Aseles recollected the memories in the Cave of Wonders, but did not mention to Axel what had happened with Sora’s other, malicious half. It was the stupidest thing to do, but she followed what Riku had ordered.

Her eyebrows furrowed from his sharp tone, slightly in disbelief of his attitude. She knew he was hiding something now, from how quick he wanted to avert her attention back to Sora. She wasn’t going to get anything out of him right now, so she dropped the subject and paid attention to the matters at hand. Leon was quick to send a message to King Mickey of Sora’s condition, leaving Aerith and Kairi to attend to Sora while he and the others unceasing to guard the town. With Vanitas out, Aseles wanted nothing more but to have extra protection around them. Who knew what the sinister guy hunted now that he was out. She longed he wasn’t going to aim for her other hand next...

“That Chad guy really needs to get punched in the face,” Axel commented casually.

“I would be glad to do it,” Aseles mumbled.

Axel patted her shoulder, “Do you think it’s such a good idea to keep traveling?” Aseles looked over to him, seeing a sympathetic look cross his face, “I know you need to, but keep in mind your safety.”

“If I hadn’t been there, maybe things would’ve ended differently,” Aseles added.

Axel sighed, “That’s true. Then it’s a good thing you were. Last thing we need is something to befall you, and none of us can get to you.”

“Right, thank you, Axel,” Aseles quirked a smile, but it left as quick as it came. “Maybe I should go check on him. It’s been a couple of hours already.”

“Yeah, I have to get going, and see if Leon needs anything.” The two stood, facing the door. However, it opened, revealing Leon heading inside. His eyes caught the duo, and he waved them over despite them already nearing to him.

“Axel, you’re needed in the USS, with Cloud and Tifa.”

“Right right, heading over,”Axel waved a hand, patting Aseles’ shoulder briefly, “See you later, alright?” She nodded in response, and the redhead swaggered his way out of the Study, leaving Aseles with Leon now. Aseles was about to comment on his arrival, but she narrowed her eyes to see Leon head to the door, and lock it closed. He budged the door once, but added a chair for good measure against the doorknob.

“Leon? What are you doing?” Aseles questioned.

He straightened his posture, with one hand in his front pocket with the other opened to the side, “I promised you, didn’t I?” A small gale erupted into the Study, Aseles swiftly backing up and shielding her face with her arms. Leon squinted his eyes, remaining still with a hand briefly fixing the front of his bangs once the winds died down. Aseles lowered her arms, blinking rapidly past her bangs to catch the blue figure forming in the middle of the room.

The loose papers scattered and dwindled like feathers, forming a circle around the person in the room. His long robes, ancient yet cottoned stretched out along his feet, and his pointed hat emphasized his wardrobe of a sorcerer. His eyes scanned along the ground and tossed chairs, but when they elevated to proper eye-level, Aseles felt the sharp tinge of overpowering caution. Her eyes darted to Leon who gave her a soft nod, his hand resting on her upper back.

“Know what you’re getting yourself into, Aseles,” Leon cautioned. Aseles swallowed, unable to utter a proper, coherent word. Her tongue melted and spewed against her teeth when the soft steps drew closer, and in front of her stood the influential and domineering Yen Sid.

“Aseles,” he bowed his head, his hands folding in front of his robes in meticulous courtesy.

Aseles gripped her fingers, sighing sharply of his sudden arrival, “You’re...you’re here.”

“You wished to speak to me,” Yen Sid kindly reminded her with perceptive eyes, and a soft smile, “Where would you like to start?”


	13. Deep Dive

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Well, well, WHALE. What have we got here, another chapter?? Well I say, I DARE SAY, this is shaping up to be most interesting, isn't it? 
> 
> A few less pages than regular, but I'm glad to take this out as it is. A lot of changes were made, my main focus on Aseles and how she will come to grips of what the future will hold for her. I did have Toy Story as a world, but I entirely took that out (because it was rushed, and it was god awful for me to read. My younger self did not make good choices when it came to character development). I hope you enjoy this chapter, I know I did~
> 
> I hope you all have a pleasant week, I'll catch you soon.
> 
> Sincerely, 
> 
> Keys :T

The trek up the staircase was everlasting, infinity compared to the rest of the galaxy that the worlds harbored. Her eyes were never accustomed to seeing this place often; it was no surprise she was getting nauseous from the climb. Everything was far too spacious to her liking.

She refused to look down or back; her fear of heights has not dwindled or faded, and jeezes did she hate it. She wondered why Yen Sid did not automatically teleport them into his Study, but her only guess was that he wanted her to have some fresh air outside before they stepped in. Yen Sid seemed undisturbed of the climb, almost hovering in his steps while Aseles felt the gravity take her soles prisoner, and make them succumb to her entire weight.

When they finally reached the top, they walked in with silence but with familiarity of each other’s presence. Yen Sid went to rearrange some books on his shelf, bringing a few over onto his desk. Aseles took the seat in front, noticing a single chair had been placed there. She cleared her throat, nervously fixing her bangs once she sat down. Her eyes traveled to Yen Sid now taking the seat across in his luxurious chair. When his eyes lifted to look at her, she felt the stream of her blood freeze, and she opened her mouth involuntarily to say something…but nothing came out.

Yen Sid smiled lightly, “Now tell me, young wielder, what is it that I can help you with?” Aseles coughed to the side, but regained her posture and straightened herself in her chair. She pushed her hands beneath her thighs, attempting to remove the sweat that was accumulating onto her palms.

Aseles mentally wired and rearranged all words and memories in a line, or at least she was trying. Finally when she was here, she felt so taken aback and waned on her true purpose of being here, and suddenly began to think perhaps talking to Yen Sid was a waste of time. Why did she need Yen Sid’s help when he had other matters to attend to, and she being able to fix her own problems-

No, she wasn’t capable. That mere thought struck her like a bolt of lightning, and she felt stunned in her seat. All recaps of her turmoil, miseries and bad luck stocked on top of one another in a heap of anxiety, and she felt herself shake internally of how rapidly the feeling had arrived with the addition of golden eyes boring into her consciousness. She did not notice the dilemma she was in consciously until now…

“You have been burdened with a lot of difficulty the past three years, Aseles. Rest assured, I will try my best to aid you in however way I can,” Yen Sid quoted softly, making Aseles’ anxiety lessen by a fraction. It was not much but it helped stabilize her.

“I know I don’t bring good news to you,” Aseles quirked her mouth, recalling that a previous time she met him, she had confessed secrets about Roxas and Namine against her group of friends. It was not a good time. “But I’m starting to worry that whatever is happening to me will affect the future for myself, and my friends.”

“Please, clarify,” Yen Sid pursued, gesturing with a respectful, open hand.

Aseles shifted a bit in her seat, clearing her throat before continuing, “I was able to contact someone by the name of Terra- or, well, he was able to contact me. I remember…when I was with Merlin during a time before Sora and the others took down Maleficent in Hollow Bastion, and I fled with Merlin…I was in a field. I don’t know…where we were exactly but this Terra was there. He kept talking in strange sentences, something about watching out for _him_ , being the Chosen One, I don’t know, it was a long time ago.”

Aseles inhaled, seeing Yen Sid’s warm demeanor steadily dropping. She knew it shouldn’t deter her from continuing, but now it felt like he was examining her, and suspecting she was lying to him. She forcefully paused herself, but jumped a bit in place when the sorcerer’s voice echoed in the Study.

“Continue, please,” Yen Sid announced, catching Aseles off guard.

She nodded, and rubbed her leg briefly, “Then, it was only recently that I…began to see him in my thoughts and dreams. At first I thought they were dreams, but then we began talking about current events, and I did not know if they were real or not. They seemed….they felt _so_ real, I couldn’t tell them apart. He kept cautioning me about the future, about my friends, my memories…a Keyblade War and….” Her eyes lifted gradually, meeting Yen Sid’s piercing orbs, “Who is Master Eraqus? I know you mentioned him once before but he brought him up as if it were his last, dying breath….”

A settlement of remorse washed down Yen Sid’s face, Aseles immediately regretful that she had brought that name up. At first Yen Sid nothing, but the next second he sighed greatly, and recollected his thoughts to reflect a cool and collected exterior as usual. The name was familiar to him, Aseles knew it, and the way he addressed the name was of high regard, respectful and kind.

“Did this Terra signify who Master Eraqus was to you?” Yen Sid prompted.

Aseles looked to the ceiling for verification, but she looked back to Yen Sid, “When I was in a world with my friends, I was stuck in an alleyway to rest. I don’t…remember much of it, or what happened to me that got me so sick. But I do remember that name…Eraqus.”

“Master Eraqus was a recognizable Keyblade Master two decades ago, one affiliated with Master Xehanort as I had revealed to you. He was heavily induced in Light, and sought sanctuary and teachings in it to become who he was with his weapon of choice,” Yen Sid began with a hint of sadness.

“What happened to him?” Aseles questioned.

Yen Sid’s folded hands tensed, folding on top of each other, “Master Eraqus passed on by the hands of his pupil…Terra, around a decade ago.” Aseles froze, her teeth clamping onto each other while her rear melted into her seat. Did….Did Yen Sid mean-

“H-He killed him?” Aseles blurted out accidently.

Yen Sid nodded nevertheless, his eyes dropping, “Unfortunately.”

“W-Why?” Aseles exhaled out.

Yen Sid sighed, stroking his beard lightly with cautious fingers, “Circumstances betrayed the two to face one another. It is truly a sad and unbearable story; not for the faint of heart.”

“T-This doesn’t make sense- then what happened to Terra?” Aseles asked next, feeling the hooves kicking harshly in her stomach. “If it was so long ago…”

“That, I do not know. Last I knew of Terra, Master Aqua had gone to rescue her peer, but of what occurred that day is unknown to me. My only conclusion is that Master Aqua perished, and Terra followed soon after.”

Aseles buried her face into her hands, reveling in the new information being absorbed into her mind. Dear worlds….what happened to Terra? Mentally in her mind, and even physically. This was bigger, much bigger than she anticipated.

“Then, I don’t understand,” Aseles exhaled, feeling her fingers trembling, “How can he talk to me?”

“I believe the best way to approach this is to start from the beginning.” A pot of green tea and cups were laid in front of the two, Aseles taking it kindly and resting it on her lap. Yen Sid offered her tarts and cookies, but Aseles refused, unknowing if she was going to be able to let it sit in her stomach comfortably. Yen Sid took a sip, and placed his cup down to rest beside the books he gathered. Naturally, Yen Sid lifted two fingers up, and three other books floated to his gesture. They opened on certain sections, laying on his wide desk. His tall stance let him peer along the thousands of words laid before him, Aseles waiting patiently for him to start the history lesson while sipping her tea occasionally.

“The Keyblade War,” Yen Sid drew out deeply, making Aseles set her cup aside quickly to pay attention. “A great yet certainly a perilous conflict between all ranks of Keyblade Wielders among the worlds; a grand war, for the sake of a Light that belonged to no one, but its own. Although the worlds were open to one another for travel and good bearings, thoughts and rationalities were divided greatly on what was truly the truest and purest form of path. Light and Darkness, two coexisting forms of power that could not live together, but could not live without one another brought a barrier among the worlds, and thus induced a great disunion among the people and the protectors of the worlds.”

Yen Sid looked to another book, “Kingdom Hearts, a core of many and infinite amount of power was overtaken by individuals who pursued for the true answers, but little did they know that fighting for it was damaging it.”

Aseles blinked gently, remembering the text she read in the computer, “But, Yen Sid?” He looked up to her, but when he said nothing, she took it as a cue to continue, “I came across words that said…whoever opens it opens a door to a _New World_?”

Yen Sid’s eyebrows arched, and it took a moment for Aseles to realize that he was surprised, “Yes, you are correct.” Aseles waited as he flipped the page, his eyes drawing down the words before looking up to her after replenishing his memory, “The Kingdom Hearts Sora, Donald, Goofy and you is not the same Kingdom Hearts hinted in the inscriptions you must have come across.”

“What’s the difference?” Aseles inquired.

“Although they are the same, the Kingdom Hearts laid before the white doors is only a segment, a branch of the true Kingdom Hearts that forms after the _χ-blade_ is formed. I am sure you are aware of that word, as well?” Aseles nodded, prompting Yen Sid to continue without a fault, “The _χ-blade_ is the most powerful Keyblade known to humankind, and once it is forged, its true wielder will be the one to open the door of the true Kingdom Hearts.”

“How is it forged?”

“The purest form of Light and Darkness must merge together to create it, but alas I have not seen it with my own eyes; it is of dark folklore that I had a glimpse of when I was becoming a sorcerer, but I did not know the extent of its believability…until Master Xehanort.”

Aseles narrowed her eyes, gripping her knees nervously, “He tried to forge it?”

“He tried, and he succeeded,” Yen Sid frowned greatly, furthering Aseles’ curiosity. “But its wielder, Ventus, did not coincide with Master Xehanort’s beliefs, and turned against him.” Oh gosh, so Ventus, Aqua and Terra were all connected to this wave of conflict against Xehanort, and somehow, in some way…they all perished with Eraqus?

Aseles frowned, pushing her hands beneath her legs, “That’s….awful. Everything.”

Yen Sid nodded gently, “Their adventure did not bear good news. Master Eraqus taught Terra, Ventus and Master Aqua under his study, but unbeknownst to any of us, Master Xehanort resorted to pulling puppet strings, and built walls between the students, and the students between their teacher. I do not know what became of all three in the finality of the situation, but it appears that Master Xehanort has unfinished business in his quest for something far more greater than we have realized, despite the damage he already caused beforehand.”

“That’s….really awful,” Aseles exhaled shakily, rubbing her face with a quick motion, “Whenever I saw Terra, he always looked……so sad. I didn’t know how severe it was. But….how was I to know why he was so sad? What if I’m just attaching this all together just so it makes sense to me?”

“Please, shed some light to me, and perhaps I can help.”

Aseles straightened in her seat, rubbing her bandaged hand, “There’s a lot of things in my life that I don’t know about, or make sense of. When I was in that field, having escaped my exile, he talked to me and always hinted to me that we have met before. I don’t remember anything past the time I got my keyblade, except that I knew I was living in Radiant Garden, and I was with Ansem. Maybe I did meet him, but I just don’t remember, and I don’t know _why_ I _don’t_.”

“Hmm..” Yen Sid nodded, resting his fingertips at the very edge of his jaw.

Aseles trailed her fingers up into the concaves of her eyes, rubbing them before dragging her fingers down her cheeks and off her jaw, “I don’t remember anything…I don’t. I recently got some of my memories back somehow in a book, but I do not know who sent them to me. Then…..”

“Then?”

....Sora was going to be angry with her later. She knew it.

“Sora has suddenly sparked a dark being inside of him. He goes by the name of Vanitas-“ Yen Sid’s eyes widened by a fraction, and Aseles halted from continuing. A sudden urgency rushed into her bloodstream.

“Vanitas?” Yen Sid repeated.

“Yes,” Aseles nodded, curling her fingers in her care protectively.

“This is graver than I feared,” Yen Sid pressed his hand to his eyes.

“What do you mean?” Aseles questioned immediately.

Yen Sid sighed, folding his hands in front of him again, but firmer, “Vanitas was the dark entity within Ventus. When they forged, by King Mickey’s words, the _χ-blade_ was created.” Oh jeezes, she knew she should’ve told someone. Crap. She could imagine the lecture Mickey would give her if he was here and learning everything she was confessing to Yen Sid.

“Ughh…” Aseles resisted cursing in front of the wizard.

“Where is Sora?” Yen Sid asked.

“He’s resting,” Aseles held her mouth in hand, gritting her teeth, “Vanitas was taken out of him. We don’t know where he is.” At that, Yen Sid stood up, and his back was facing her direction. Aseles shook in her seat, the emotional overload progressively getting worse; was Vanitas hiding this whole time then since Terra’s time, inside of Sora? Did that mean Ventus was inside of him too? Yen Sid didn’t know what happened to him but could that be possible??? Wait…Keyblade wielders could….extract their own hearts-did that mean that....Xehanort had pulled him out from the portal? But then, how did...Xehan-!

“That’s how he came back!” Aseles exhaled greatly, trying not to gasp from the sudden quake.

Yen Sid had reached the same conclusion from the way he looked to her gravely, “That is how Master Xehanort is here; he hid himself within other being. Now I fear that perhaps it was Terra who was possessed by him. That may be the reason why he is able to contact you. Or a part of the mystery of his appearance.”

Oh….crud, it all made sense now. The way he cautioned her, the way he had warned her about Vanitas, about venturing out of her path, about Sora and her friends…..Oh no. Oh no, no no no no….no. No! He was contacting her to warn her all along. It still didn’t explain how he was able to do it, but it was possible, it was possible it had all been real! She wouldn’t have known unless she came to Yen Sid sooner, or she confessed to Leon and the others about Sora’s rising Darkness. This would have been avoided if only she had said something.

“Ventus was in deep slumber when I last laid eyes on him. Master Aqua had set her sights in awakening her comrade, but again, I can only conclude she was not successful. However, with what you are confessing to me-“ Yen Sid looked to her, “-Ventus is very much alive, but his whereabouts unaware and lost to us. It is a possibility he sought refuge in Sora.”

“What if he wants to create the _χ-blade_ again?” Aseles cut in next, standing up to feel formidable in their dire conversation.

Yen Sid’s eyes dropped in their warm degree, a cold and icy stare replacing his gentle nature, “Master Xehanort has shown limited restraint in his goals. We must approach this with caution, and make sure Sora is protected at all costs.”

Aseles nodded from the severity of the situation, but groaned from how extremely vital this now grew. She knew Vanitas was someone to worry about, but the level of extreme was unidentified to her until Xehanort came into play. Damn that man, did he not cause enough suffering and trouble for whoever was in his way? And Terra…poor Terra….

“This all seems like such a mess,” Aseles ran her fingers through her hair. The pull of wood scraping caught her attention, and she looked over to see Yen Sid was reaching into the compartment of a nearby desk. He pulled something out, but his long sleeve covered his fist. He approached Aseles, and he motioned for her to face him.

“Extend your hand, wielder,” he replied. Aseles blinked, but did as she was told, and extended her fingers out like opened petals of a rapidly, blooming flower. In her hand a small clink was heard, and when Yen Sid’s arm moved, there revealed a strange object in her possession.

It was made out of glass, a color of blue seafoam decorating the shell of the star shaped body. It glowed with a lime-green energy from within, and one of the triangular forms of a corner was missing, replaced with that of a lightning bolt. It was lightweight, almost like holding a feather despite taking her entire palm size.

“What’s this?” Aseles had never seen such an object before.

“The Star Shard will always know where to take you when you need it the most. It is a traveling device unlike any other; you will not need the assistance of a gummi ship to travel, but where this takes you is almost against your will.”

Aseles quirked her mouth, inspecting it closely, “Hmm….thank you, but why give it to me?”

“You may need it; it serves a better purpose with you rather than lying, unused in my Study,” Yen Sid advised. His stare from earlier lessened only a bit, making Aseles feel extremely guilty.

“I-I’m sorry, I know I should’ve told someone sooner, but I didn’t want Sora to feel like he couldn’t trust me. This is all a mess now,” Aseles sighed defeated, pushing the Starshard carefully into her front pocket.

“You valued your friendship more than your security, but I believe that speaks volumes, Aseles,” Yen Sid reached forward, briefly placing his hand onto her hand, and lifting it up. Aseles winced from the movement, but her eyes looked it to see that a small coat of illuminated green take cover. Her fingers regained full movement, and when Yen Sid let go of it, Aseles removed the gauze to see her hand had been completely fixed.

“Your friendship is far deeper than you realize; they are your family, and you did not wish to jeopardize that. The current events taking place might seem glum now, but when you unite yourself with your friends, that’s when things will start to look up,” Yen Sid rested his hands on his front, smiling genuinely to Aseles when she looked up to him.  

“Thank you for everything,” Aseles nodded gently. “I’ll be careful.”

“The Starshard,” Yen Sid pointed out. Aseles blinked, but when she pulled the object out of her pocket, it suddenly began to shimmer and shake viciously in her hand. She shut her eyes, and everything suddenly began to expand.

“Until then, Aseles.”

Her body was rocketing across the air, her body formations extending and pulling like taffy, yet bound like tough rope. Her eyes spun and sprouted of different colors, and her entire body was encased in a bubble of sorts; she felt everything rushing, but no wind penetrated her shell.

Just when she thought she was getting lost, her body suddenly plummeted down, and she shut her eyes to repel the scream in her lungs. She cut down the atmosphere in a zagged glimmer of light, but the next second she was stumbling on the cobble-stoned floor. Her eyes blinked rapidly to regain her eyesight, but she stood up from the ground to see she was in the Postern of Radiant Garden.

“Ugh…I’m going to puke for sure,” Aseles held onto her stomach, quickly putting the Starshard back into her pocket. Her ears picked up the sound of people talking. She looked toward the entrance of the building of machinery. There she saw Leon and Yuffie conversing with one another, arguing about Leon’s health.

“I told you I would take the night shift. Why are you being so stubborn?” Yuffie lectured, locking her hands on her hips.

Leon stared at her deadpanned, “I told you I’m fine. I do not need you to lecture me like I’m some child.”

“You might as well be my child; you forget to eat sometimes until I have to remind yo- Hey!” Yuffie greeted, waving to Aseles as they walked up the steps. Aseles and Leon quickly locked eyes, the older male more alert in his walk when the two parties crossed.

“See, Aseles would agree with me. Don’t you think Squall is acting like an old man already?” Yuffie thumbed.

Leon’s expression did not change, “It’s Leon…”

“Actually, I do,” Aseles cleared her throat, making Yuffie grin at her remark. “I want to take Leon, to make sure he eats something.” Leon looked to her with arms crossed, but she suggested again, “Because eating is _really_ important.”

Leon quickly caught on her drift, and released the tension in his arms, “Fair enough.”

“…I should have you around more, Aseles. He listens to you better than he listens to me,” Yuffie scoffed. She wagged her finger to him, making him lean his face back a bit, “I’ll see you later, to make sure you _did_ eat.” With a final ruffle to Aseles’ hair, Yuffie headed back where they had walked from, but the duo waited until they were completely alone.

“How did it go?” Leon asked.

Aseles exhaled out longingly, rubbing her cheek off with a quick palm of her hand, “You’re going to have to eat a long lunch; it’s a loooong story.”

LATER:

Aseles had almost forgotten how good it felt to shower. The droplets hung loosely at the ends of her damp threads, the soft wrinkles on her fingers exposing the deed of her hot bath. Her worries dwelled onto the surface, some steaming into the air while others sunk back into her skin to hold her thoughts. After dressing in loose sweats and a long sleeved shirt provided by Leon, Aseles cooked herself a hot meal and ate with Donald and Goofy. They stayed relatively quiet, but all pondered on the thought of Sora’s recovery.

They had not discussed what had happened with Sora since their arrival, but Aseles honestly did not know how to start such a harsh and sensitive conversation. She thought this had been resolved, that it would never be brought up again. Now here they were, in the same position as last time.

“I guess all we can do is wait,” Goofy started off. Aseles nodded immediately of his sudden impulse to speak, glad to know she didn’t have to be the first.

“He’ll be fine. We have to keep an eye on him, and see if anything changes,” Aseles commented carefully.

“Did you tell Leon?” Donald asked.

Aseles quirked her mouth, recalling their conversation in the Great Maw after Aseles’ arrival. After making sure they were not followed or being eavesdropped, Aseles gave it to him straight on what was happening to Sora. The man was not pleased of not knowing it until now, but after her entire reveal of everything that Yen Sid told her, they gained more trust than doubt. He thanked her, but both agreed that if the problem were to be addressed, Sora would be the one to deliver the news first.

“Yeah, but he won’t say anything until Sora does,” Aseles commented.

“And what if he doesn’t?” Donald combated.

“He has to, he has no other choice. I know everyone is suspecting something at this point; he can’t hide it forever,” Aseles commented, pushing aside her empty plate and rubbing the edge of her mouth with her hand. “We’ll stay until he’s fully recovered. With Vanitas now out, we have to make sure he doesn’t get close to us, especially Sora.”

“Right, we’ll make sure that doesn’t happen,” Goofy smiled, patting Donald on the back of his shoulder, “Isn’t that right?”

Donald sighed, but agreed to the comment, “Yeah, of course. I’m just wondering what that Vanitas guy is planning now.”

“I think that’s something we all need to be concerned about,” Aseles groaned lightly. “I’m going to go check up on him, and give Kairi a break.” The three cleaned their own dishes and parted, Aseles heading upstairs while Donald and Goofy remained in the kitchen to give Kairi company. Aseles made her way up the stairs, and she softly rasped her knuckles against the doorframe to Sora’s room. A small shuffle echoed from side, and the sound of footsteps approached. The door unlocked, a sleepy Kairi having opened it.

“Oh, Aseles,” Kairi yawned, rubbing her eyes off. “What are you doing here?”

Aseles gave her a small smile, “Go eat and take a shower. You look exhausted.”

“But...what about Sora?” She had not left his side since they arrived, Aseles admiring her kindness to her friend. But she knew deep down, Kairi was developing strong feelings for Sora; she wanted to be with him at any cost, but Aseles had hoped it would have been in better circumstances than this.

“I’ll look after him. Don’t worry. If something comes up, I’ll let you know,” Aseles advised. Kairi hesitated, but recollected herself to do what she was offered, “Thank you.” She smiled briefly to Aseles before walking diagonally across the hall to head to her room. It closed gently, and Aseles did the same when she entered Sora’s room.

The room was warmly lit with a dim, orange glow. The curtains were pulled back to reveal the orange sunset from outside, diversified with lavenders and pinks. Her eyes moved over to Sora, still sleeping soundly and longingly in his slumped form. Aseles walked over, tugging the chair Kairi was sitting in a bit to the side to have some distance between her and his face. She wanted to examine him properly, and indeed she found no negative symptoms on him having a better look at him. He was sleeping comfortably, his chest rising and falling gracefully. She wondered if he was dreaming about something...being out for so long.

Aseles rested her head on her folded arms, settling them onto the bed beside Sora’s side. She sighed tiredly; she was so emotionally invested in everything right now, no doubt an affect given to her by Yen Sid’s conversation. She was glad she went after all, although new concerns had arisen from their conversation. She hoped-gosh she hoped on the worlds- that everything was going to be alright.

Her eyes narrowed at the recognition of those golden eyes, slightly cringing from how vivid they were when she saw them. It was absolutely and horrendously a close call; he could have done anything to her, they were all literally at his mercy. So....why didn’t he?

Vanitas constantly badgered Aseles about being a hero, and doing the right thing, but why was he so insistent? Why did he pursue to change her mind when he could have just ended her there? Did he have a bigger motive that she was aware about? It could be, but Aseles was afraid to dwell on it any further.

Aseles lifted her head slightly, and there she saw Sora’s hand, laying perfectly still at his side. She reached carefully, cautious of waking him up if she touched him. She paused, but curled her fingers outward and onto his like laid petals. Her fingernails lightly grazed his hot skin, and she squeezed her hold on him to reassure him that he was not alone while he slept. She fully rested her head onto her arm, and her eyes began to flicker. She felt the petite tug of slumber beneath her eyes, obeying its command. Her chest heaved out gently, and she felt relaxed.

 

_What are you afraid of?_

_Hazel eyes spoke to her in the white embrace of light. She leaned, standing right in front of them. They were higher from her eye level, but the crane of her neck to look up to them did not disturb her. It felt...familiar._

_A pair of lips formed, encompassing teeth that hurt to smile._

_What are you afraid of the most?_

_She was unsure of how to answer._

_What was the right answer?_

_Answer me._

_Her eyes shifted to close, now staring at those eyes drunkenly that resembled much of distant oceans of heavy mist. They held onto her delicately, and it was there Aseles felt a hand hold her jaw. The palm cradled her jaw of that like a porcelain doll._

_You’re afraid of me…_

_Aseles did...not know this._

_I’m not who I use to be._

_Her forehead lightly rolled across his. He was so close...She could literally feel the beating of his heart against his temple_

_I don’t want anything..._

_Minutes in, an hour, a day it felt like. She could not part away. She did not want to...._

_Who are you?, she breathed out. The lips parted open, and she waited with anticipation._

_But to make you see_

_that everything is not_

_what it is meant to be._

_You’re missing something._

_I will be glad to give it back to you-_

“Aseles.”

Her eyes shot open, her back immediately tossing itself upwards. Her chest heaved greatly, and she gripped onto the sheets, a warm pulse moving in her right. Her eyes shot forward properly, but stayed to see it was Sora having woken her up.

“Hey, it’s alright,” Sora reassured. Aseles relaxed, and she sat properly down onto the chair. She ran her fingers through her cold hair, muttering to herself briefly before looking over to the clock. She had only napped for fifteen minutes. Gosh, it felt like two hours.

“Sorry, I didn’t mean to wake you up,” Aseles replied, removing her hand from Sora’s grasp.

He smiled, shaking his head, “No, you didn’t wake me up.”

“How are you feeling?”

“I feel...fine,” Sora nodded gently, his smile diminishing. His hand traveled to his chest, rubbing it roughly, “I feel like I’m bandaged up everywhere though.”

“You took a heavy hit,” Aseles spoke quietly, her fingers instinctively rubbing the back of her right knuckles. “We were worried you were injured heavily.”

“Yeah...” Sora rubbed his face with a hand. His eyes shifted to the side, Aseles reverting her attention to the bedsheets instead. They both stayed quiet, until Sora groaned to himself and hooked his legs over the bed. Aseles instantly stood up the moment Sora did, and she caught his arm before he could fall over. He gripped his head, but Aseles kept him steady.

“Don’t get up, you need to lay down still. Did you want something to drink, to eat?” Aseles asked.

“I didn’t...protect you, any of you,” Sora grimaced. His head hung, his short bangs limp on his forehead. They resembled much like the branches of a willow tree: despaired and self-conscious. Aseles already suspected on where he was going with this, and she didn’t want to dwell on it anymore.

“Sora, it’s okay, we’re fine. Everyone is fine-“

“I’m sorry, Aseles,” Sora lifted his head, catching Aseles by surprise. He looked directly to her, but she did not back away or let go of her hold on him. “I did not want to break my promise to you, I shouldn’t have. Did Vanitas hurt you?”

Aseles swallowed rapidly, but she shook her head, “No, he didn’t. He and Chad left after.”

“Aseles, don’t lie to me,” Sora held her restored hand tightly, and she tried her best not to wince from the memory that was laid onto it.

“We didn’t know what was going to happen. It’s not your fault,” Aseles squeezed his hand back, attempting to pull him back to the bed. However, he swiftly pulled Aseles to him, and she tensed from the sudden embrace he laid on her. His face dug into her shoulder, and she stilled from the way his fingers dug into her flesh and bone. At first she was about to pat his head, but her hands halted when she heard the soft murmuring of withheld sniffles right beside her ear. Aseles looked over carefully, her eyes wide of Sora’s sudden display. Her hands stayed at her sides, but Sora’s heaving chest did not falter to present her shoulder with tears. She felt the droplets pressed through her shirt, and she frowned greatly from how rapidly Sora had broken.

“Aseles...” Sora breathed out, his eyes shimmering from the warm, yellow light from outside. His cheeks glistened of his true emotion, and Aseles could not help but to hug him now. She squeezed him back tightly, but even she felt the stinging in her throat and eyes.

“I-It’s going to be alright,” Aseles embraced him, the edges of her eyes fueling with tears. Her body shuddered from how cold it had gotten, but bathed into the heat Sora was providing for her. Her hands locked onto his sides, her arms crossing like vines. Sora’s hand brushed along her spine, soothing and cradling almost.

“....I-I didn’t know what to do,” Aseles strained out.

“You kept everyone safe. Thank you, thank you so much,” Sora exhaled shakily, collecting his soft tone. His fingers grazed into her hair, and he began to comb it to lower her tense hold onto him.

She pulled back, and began to wipe her eyes with a quick swipe of her hand, “We’re just happy you’re fine. I’m hap-py y-you’re fine.”

“And I’m happy you are,” Sora replied just the same, locking his hands with hers tightly, “It happened so fast...I can hardly remember the trip here. I thought...I thought Vanitas did something horrible.”

“No no, we’re all okay,” Aseles commented gently. “Leon and the others had been checking up on you, and Kairi practically never left your bedside.”

“I see. I worried everyone,” Sora quirked his lips to a frown, his hand climbing up to sooth the side of his neck. “I appreciate everyone’s help. I definitely feel a lot better.”

“Yeah, that’s all that matters,” Aseles smiled gently, clearing her throat for reassure her confidence. “Did you want something to eat? I’ll be happy to make it for you.”

“Are you sure that’s not a bother?” Sora’s stomach gurgled and rumbled before him, making Aseles chuckle of his immediate blush from it.

“No, not at all. Anything in particular?”

“Um, I don’t have a preference. Just something edible,” Sora chuckled, soothing his stomach. “Are you coming back?”

“Hmm, I’m guessing Kairi will come back soon. She might be showering right now, but I’ll bring you your food.” Aseles quirked a smile, “It might not be Aerith’s cooking but you won’t feel hungry after.”

“I’m sure it will be fine,” Sora amused himself with a grin. It soon faltered to a genuine smile, “Aseles, thank you.”

Aseles nodded and beamed back, “Sure thing.” She left the room, leaving the door slightly ajar. She walked down the hall, but paused to see Kairi exit her room, squeezing her wet hair out. She was dressed in a simple shirt and shorts, and her lavender, brewing eyes looked up to Aseles.

“How is he?” Kairi asked.

“He’s awake now,” Aseles smiled. Kairi’s eyes shined with bright horizons, and she instantly rushed across the hall and into Sora’s room. Aseles heard her greet Sora enthusiastically, followed with Sora grunting briefly from the tight embrace she must have given him. Aseles quirked her mouth, looking to the floor from how sweet she really was to him.

_“He’s a good kid. He can pick whoever he wants to be with...So, what if he picked you?”_

Aseles’ lips drew to a firm line, her hand clamping onto the walking rail of the staircase. Her eyes gazed down to the last step, her feet carrying her down steadily.

_“I don’t think we would want the same thing from each other.”_

She reached the ground floor, rubbing her jaw with a hand. What if....nah. No. No no no. She rolled her eyes at the thought. Of course no, no he wouldn’t. Why would he, anyways....

“Hey.” Aseles paused, her eyes lifting up to see Donald and Goofy greeting Riku. He lifted a hand to wave to the duo, his crystal eyes catching Aseles.

“How you doing, Riku?” Goofy beamed.

“Good. I think Cid wants to talk to you about the gummi ship,” Riku commented casually, resting his hands on the head of a chair.

“Let’s go check it out, Goofy,” Donald elbowed him gently, “See you later, Aseles.” She waved back to them, watching them exit out of the door and close it behind them. The cool air of the night lingered among the kitchen floor, making Aseles slightly shiver. However, her body chilled further as Riku approached, and he beckoned her with a finger to sit beside him. She stood beside, crossing her arms.

“Is this going to take long? I have to cook something for Sora to eat,” she countered.

“He’s awake?” Riku’s serious attitude dwindled, and she nodded. “I’ll be right back.” He hurriedly passed by her, making her sigh of relief of his abandoned lecture or conversation with her. Instead she focused on cooking, but literally all she could come up with were scrambled eggs, a quick batch of pancakes, and some leftover herbs, vegetables and rice in the fridge. She sweatdropped of how silly it looked now, but reassured herself it was fine. With a tall glass of water in one hand and the plate in the other, she was about to head up when rushed footsteps hurried down. Before she could react, Kairi delicately but swiftly removed the plate and glass from her hand.

“Don’t worry, I’ll take it for him! Riku said he wanted to talk to you so don’t go anywhere!” Kairi didn’t contain her excitement to go back, and she left almost pouncing up the stairs with Sora’s nourishment in hand. Aseles watched in bothered disappointment, her arms falling straight down her sides. What the hell. She could’ve taken it up herself...

Now forced to wait, Aseles sulked herself in a chair, crossing her arms tersely onto her chest with her rear practically at the edge of her seat. Her eyes narrowed to the wall, and she let out an irritated huff. Moments later, the sound of footsteps reemerged, but she didn’t hide her irate face to Riku. It didn’t look like he noticed she was bothered, infuriating her more of his faux-fatherly attitude to her.

She wondered what Riku was _really_ thinking about...

 

MEANWHILE...

 

???’S POV:

“You sure this about this?” The bellied henchman twiddled his thumbs in thought, grumbling of all the things that could go wrong. However, the crowned, malicious queen before him spread her red lips so widely, it put a bloody dagger to shame. Her eyes illuminated green from her held staff, but in her eyes she looked into the mirrored fog enchanted beside. Her nails clinked against the top of her staff’s orb, a frustrated grin remembering her deceased crow and partner. That damned, Nobody castle had nothing for her after its collapse, and she regretted it entirely. Nothing was left to salvage, and she lost a trustworthy companion in it all. Now she was stuck with a buffoon, and hoped he did not halt or destroy her plans.

In her sight laid the tall, blue-tinted castle, its towers curving upwards to touch the clouds in the sky. Its golden banners waved gently in the wind, and the many residents of Disney Town walked without a worry or concern. For now.

“Of course, I am you imbecile. Stop questioning my motives,” she snapped swiftly, making her henchman cower his head in the shadow of the chamber they hid in.

He fumbled with his words, trying to make sense of her outrageous plan, “But that Cornerstone is thicker than cement! We’ll never get through it!” Perhaps if he could persuade her-

“Unlike you, I have a trustworthy and reliable contact to depend on. He has given me more than I ever dreamt, and I will be such a fool to not take it,” she remembered his glistening, golden eyes, and again her grin increased dramatically across her face.

“W-What if it’s a trap?? What if he’s up to something?”

“Are you _with_ me, or _against_ me?” she coarsely interrogated him. “If you think I will let you foil my plans, I will be happy to remind you who is the mistress of all evil!” The overweight character swallowed nervously, and he tucked his head in his arms, wincing from the wild surges of electricity out of her staff.

“I-I’m only saying, Maleficent!” The witch cackled softly, making her companion’s trust waver whether he could go through with this.

She hummed in delight, and her fingers curled to the fog that displayed the Disney Castle to her, “All we have to do is wait....And then, only then can the nightmare begin…”

 

??? POV:

“Everything is set, Master….”

“Excellent. Now we need our pieces to move. Advise them that there will be consequences if they do not oblige. Everything must be set in stone; we must cleanse their wounds with fresh reminders. Everything is perfect for this grandeur moment in history we will recreate.”

“Yes, Master.”

“And the girl?”

A grin, “I assure you…she’s falling right into our trap, and she does not suspect a thing.”

“I am thrilled to hear that. Are you set for the next phase?”

“Yes. And what about your main pawn…? Will he do what is requested of him?”

“He shows reluctance to see her, but he will be the one to bring her here. Her curiosity is nothing but a rebirthing cycle; she desires to know more, so _he_ shall give her more. Call the witch to me once you leave. I need these errands to be done, and she continues to toy with the connection of that of her Somebody. I will not tolerate such childish behavior.”

“Understood, Master. And thank you, truly, for awakening my true form.”

“We have been through much, pupil. I did not lose hope to see you again, and how truly you have adapted to the worlds so easily after such a heavy decade. Now is the time to finish what we have started; do not fail me, Vanitas. I am counting on you.”

“Master....Understood.”


	14. Opposing Forces

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> New chapter, new problems, new characters, this is going to be one heck of a ride. 
> 
> Thank you all for your tremendous support, it really means a lot to me. This particular story is having major, editing changes since the last time I took a look at it, and I respect that some of them might not be what you first read, or you don't like as editing progresses. I'm generally happy with where I'm taking Aseles, and I can only hope you stick around to find out what happens next. 
> 
> Hope you all are having a great week, see you next time!
> 
> Sincerely,
> 
> Keys :]

FFW:

The days grew progressively slow, so Aseles resorted to helping around the town to occupy her mind. She assisted Leon and Yuffie in further repairs of the Castle Town, and aided Axel in patrolling areas late in the night around the Borough. She avoided confronting Riku anywhere during the day as much as possible, and when she felt like he was trying to catch a glance to her, she would break from the scene and hurry to the Crystal Fissure when she made sure she wasn’t being followed.

She hid herself inside the secretive passageway (although the memory of the cloaked person showing it to her was becoming a bit hazy), and would sit on the bridge facing the abandoned Fountain Courts. It made her uneasy to seclude herself from everyone, but if Riku would not tell her what was going on, then she would not tell him anything. But...sitting here changed how she felt about it in the beginning.

She felt safe in this place, lost without being questioned or judged; this place was so familiar, but the absence of her memories did not stop her from having it being her hideout from everyone else. Oddly enough, she was able to envision the crystal clear water, and the ghostly, afterglow view of the lavender spotlights that laid around the rims.

Every now and then her talk with Yen Sid would jump to memory, and she would look ahead of her and close her eyes, hoping she would see Terra in some shape or form. When she was not met with such a wish, she sighed in defeat and tried again to remember what happened in that alleyway, or what was the deal with her sudden dreams taunting her. The nostalgia of having Ihara troubled her, and she hoped it would not succumb to the same conclusion. No...this voice in her head felt like memories; she had heard that voice before....but why she was unable to put a name to it was unclear, much less a face. Except for...hazel eyes, those storming, displeased eyes. Something lurked in them, and when she thought she had it figured out, the answer escaped her.

With Sora’s recovery steadily improving, it didn’t take long for him to feel like his old self again, and picked up maneuvers from both Riku and Leon who grew cautious of Vanitas’ next appearance. Leon thought it would be best to have the secret among the group of the Hollow Bastion Committee, but Sora agreed to his terms and took any help he could from those involved. It didn’t surprise Aseles one morning to find Cloud dragging Sora out of his bed, trying to wake up before their training session started. Aseles didn’t see him until hours after, lying hunched over on the Bailey where Cloud had left him. She aided the wielder to Merlin’s Study to recover, and then the two were met with Riku....and Aseles rapidly parted from the duo. Once more, she was in her undisclosed space again. She sighed from how ridiculous this was getting, but the next day proved promise from Riku’s vigilant eyes.

They were now embarking on the new land of the new world, but it wasn’t anything Aseles recalled; rows of a thousand trees stretched across the flat land, with the blue sky illuminating above the green treetops. The dirt floor was cared for and rich in texture, as if it were not inhabited by anything real. The air smelled of wet dew of the morning serenity, and off into the distance Aseles watched the horizon stretching across a large open sea. 

“Where are we?” Sora walked forward, his eyes scanning the area before looking to Donald.

“Definitely somewhere new,” Donald replied. “We’ve never been here, according to the map.”

“Then it’s a good time to do some recon,” Aseles advised, checking she was stocked with potions and elixirs. She was not going to take her chances at this point. Her eyes cut across left and right, “It looks like we’re on an island, and the gummi ship dropped us off at the shoreline.”

“Hmm, maybe if we go more into the forest, we might run into somebody?” Goofy asked, scratching his head with the other gloved hand signaling the land.

“Yeah, that sounds good,” Sora nodded. The four huddled to agree on a direction, and they set course with Sora and Donald in the lead, and Goofy and Aseles right behind. Her eyes scanned the variety of shrubs and trees, and how deeply colored the moss and rocks were. The entire place was coated with sanctioned vegetation, as if nature were the only commanding force here. It was far different than the Jungle with Mowgli, Bagheera and Baloo, and yet held this strong force of seclusion. That is, until they came upon a clearing of a riverbed.

The water glistened and wavered in ribbons of yellow, with dragged branches and leaves rolling down the bank. The trees parted to give way to the grand lake they stood before, as if they were curtains to something far greater up the river. On the other side of the lake, however, a cloud of gray smoke rose upwards, holding the image of a blurred mushroom. It must be caused by some fire.

“Someone is over there,” Sora indicated with a finger. His eyes hardened to narrow for a search across the bank, but he shook his head after a moment, “But I don’t see anyone close by. We should check it out. Look, we’ll cross there.” Sora hiked toward the uplifting of a small hill, a tossed log creating a bridge. Sora ventured first, spreading his arms out like wings to redirect his balance to his feet. Once he crossed, Aseles followed after with Donald and Goofy last. Reassembled, the gang strode toward the smoke signal in the distance, but it wasn’t long until they were met with barren land.

The trees were cut down brutally and severely, leaving only harsh splinters on the trunks that remained like angry teeth. The ground was removed of any vegetation, and toward the shore were moving figures transporting logs and weaponry. They appeared to be building some type of fort.

“They look like sailors to me,” Goofy tilted his head.

“Did they have to ruin all the land though?” Aseles pouted in disappointment, crossing her arms. Her eyes hardened among the wreckage of the nature about them, opposed to the absolute greenery a few yards away. It was as if they had claimed the land influentially, but it appeared they were experienced in the matter from the way they easily carried their chores around.

The sudden abrupt of cries and shouts ascended to immediate attention, the group straightening up to draw out weapons in hand. A group of men were fleeing from the woods on the left side, and what Aseles saw was beyond her. A shadowed beast the size of a boulder and as tall as a door pounced into view, with wolf-like features coating its face, and a snout as red as blood. Its lavender eyes targeted the men that tripped in their run, and its body towered over the group in full offense. Its jaws were as long as a saber-tooth, with claws clamping onto the ground and digging for support. The men froze in place, but gasped and flinched from the raiding keyblade that cut across the air. The wolf creature staggered back from the hit, the men turning their heads to catch a glimpse of Sora catching his keyblade back, Aseles, Donald and Goofy standing ready at his sides.

“Get back!” Sora commanded, the sailors and pioneers swiftly climbing to their feet. They dashed past the group, and reunited with the men that were now cowering behind the half-made fort.

“Where’s John Smith when you need him?!”

“Get the attention of the ship for the captain!”

“It’s the devil’s work!”

“Ready??” Sora ordered, keyblade gripped in hand.

“Ready!” The group of fighters dispersed, Aseles and Donald cutting to the left while Goofy and Sora aimed for the right. Sora took the main offense, slamming his keyblade powerfully toward the beast’s mouth. It roared in retaliation, tossing its clawed paws in quick strikes. Sora blocked effectively, catching one paw against his keyblade and twisting the beast’s arm. It stumbled onto its side, where Aseles and Donald took the chance to send a storm of Blizzard to freeze it against the ground. The canine roared hotly, and in a sudden burst of Darkness the debris of shards shot out. Aseles quickly coated her face with her arm, seething from the sharp edges of the backfired magic. Her eyes shot up to see the beast lift its body onto its hind legs, its front paws facing toward the group.

“Separate!” Sora reinforced, and the group cut their ties, now standing independently on their own. The ground shook viciously from the avoided slam, making the ground stagger like ocean waves. Aseles regained her composure, her eyes widening to see the side of Goofy’s shield hit straight onto the face of the creature, calling its attention. The beast stomped its feet down angrily, knocking Goofy back and making him hit the other side of the fort. The men huddled behind it began to exclaim loudly, some pointing out their muskets and guns from the sides.

“Aim, FIRE!” a stubby man with black hair shouted, and out rang the powder in loud blasts. The creature snarled of their attempts, and lifted itself on its hind legs again.

“HEY!” Aseles spun her keyblade, making it burst into flames. She spun full circle, and let the keyblade cut across the air. It hit its mark against the wolf figure, sending it reeling back to crash against the shore. The beast’s legs kicked violently to get back up on its feet, Sora and Goofy quickly evacuating the men behind the fort.

“Aseles, run for it!” Goofy announced loudly. Aseles caught her keyblade in hand, her widened eyes catching glimpse of the Heartless-like monster now headed her way, and growing twice its size. She stumbled back, and inhaled a gasp to see it lunge into her direction. She immediately took off running into the woods, her arms swinging powerfully at her sides to lift her legs above obstacles.

Her head turned back to see that the shore was now gone, but the beast was literally thrashing against the maze of trees, snapping its jaws to break tossed logs in half. It lunged across an opened gap to catch up, Aseles skidding terribly and barely dodging the teeth that almost took a snap at her. She jumped over the edge of the tall hill she was on, but she did not anticipate the height of the ravine. She screamed abruptly of the realization, and her knees buckled to lighten her fall. She lost balance, and she rolled down the hill of mud and leaves. She grunted painfully, but her body alerted itself to get up once she felt a heavy weight of a boulder rolling into her direction.

“Crap!” Aseles stumbled to her feet once more, taking off into an agonizing run. Her eyes shut from the heavy drop her knees had taken for her, the soles of her boots thudding roughly. She caught sight of the running water at her side, being too deep to cross it faster than the creature when it caught up. She gritted her teeth, now making her way toward the edge of the land. The sound of a heavy waterfall rung in her ears, and she was blinded by the mist that lifted from below. She swung her keyblade across hurriedly, catching sight of the lake below. She was going to die.

Her ears picked up the sound of a stampede behind her, and she gasped from the beast that was picking up pace. Its jaws opened fully and its feet pounced full throttle, its shadow covering Aseles’ entire form. With no option left to escape, Aseles leapt from the rocky edge, her body soaring through the open air briefly before dropping like heavy weight. She screamed and shut her eyes, salvaged from the wolf that snarled behind her. Faster she dropped, curling herself into a ball to settle her panicking nerves and shield her from the water below. She rested the neck of her keyblade on the top of her head for protection, muttering and hoping she wouldn’t perish below. She inhaled a deep breath, and her body crashed into the lake full force.

Her limbs became instantly slacked, her legs trying to kick her up from meeting the deep lakebed. She struggled to redirect her attention to the surface, her body taking too many spins to find the right direction. Once the bubbles subsided, her eyes squinted to catch sight of the bright reflection of the sunlight. Her body began to frantically and poorly kick upwards, the blur of lines forcing their way into her vision. Her escaped fingers touched air, and she shot her body up, gasping in the air she lusted for with every crash and wake of the fierce turns and directions. However, the river’s currents pulled her in, tossing her into new pulls, attempting to take her life either way. Her keyblade emerged into her hand, and she stabbed onto the rocks at her side. She glued herself practically against the surface, the sharp edges of rocks meeting her skin. In a last attempt to free herself of the current, she shot her arm up to grab the bank. When it met something clutched in her grasp, she tossed her body forward and was met with delicious air again. Whatever held her let go, and Aseles crashed onto the floor, gasping greatly. Her coughs rung into the air, the bubbles in her lungs harsh and unforgiving for recovery. Her arms fumbled to regain feeling, her dress fully pressed and soaked to her bones. Her hands trembled from the damage they had taken, and her back strained to pick her up properly. The sound of shuffling feet sounded normal to her, but when Aseles realized she wasn’t the one making the noise, she froze. Her eyes lifted to look past her wet strands and to the feet before her, and what she saw left little to the imagination.

“I didn’t think my lure was going to catch you.” Aseles’ eyes shrunk into her head, and her head slowly lifted to stare at the golden coins leering into her inner core. She felt her blood draw ice in her veins, and the lump of her throat give way to an empty cry.

Vanitas smirked widely, his gloved hand suddenly gripping the back of Aseles’ dress to pick her up, “Then again, we do have interesting ways of meeting each other.”

SORA’S POV:

“Weapons on the floor!”

Sora, Donald and Goofy exchanged glances, utterly confused of how quick the events turned. He had gone into the woods to find Aseles, but five yards in he was stopped by the sailors he had helped rescue. He didn’t understand it, and his urgency to find Aseles being denied did not make him too happy either. Did they not see they were here to help? Looking closer at the group, Sora saw these grown men were not regular sailors; they were adorned in heavy fabric, travelers or settlers. Their skin was entirely pastel white, and for a moment Sora doubted they were from around this island.

“They don’t look like savages...” one man with a cap and childish face said from beside. Sora, Donald and Goofy glanced at one another once again, their hands pinned to their heads to indicate they posed no harm.

“We look like savages?” Donald retorted. Sora and Goofy frowned at the word.

“You don’t seem to be.” The three turned their heads, looking to see a man with blond hair approaching. He held a built stature, his chest adorned with a plate of silver, arching armor. His broad shoulders moved his body forward through the shrubs, his hand holding onto the rifle that rested on his shoulder. He held a strong chin and angular cheeks, his blue eyes striking among the trio, then to the group of men.

“What happened here?” the man ordered, upholding a leader-like quality.

“T-This creature came from the woods!” a ginger man exclaimed, holding onto his rifle with uncertainty.

“And they saved us,” another man informed toward Sora, Donald and Goofy.

“Then why are you holding them prisoner? Weapons down!” the blond ordered immediately. The rifles pointing to Sora, Donald and Goofy lowered, and they sighed in relief. “I apologize; the men here are slightly paranoid of visitors, considering our base was attacked recently.”

“This isn’t the first time?” Donald questioned.

“This was not something we had faced before,” the stubby man with dark haired from before approached, resting his knuckles on his hips. “Those dark creatures have been showing as of late, and we think it is the work of the savages. That is why we thought you were one of them.”

“Savages?” Sora narrowed his eyes, locking them to the men nearby him, “Who are the savages?”

“Blast! Where have you been, John Smith?!” Sora, Donald and Goofy jumped from the loud bellow behind the men. They quickly parted to make room for the wide stature of a man, dressed in an elaborate tunic of different lavenders. A sword rested at his hip, crafted of the finest iron and silver with the handle adorned with jewels. At his side was an opposite-sized lackey, his fingers fiddling with a an umbrella to shield the bearded man. His eyes viciously stared at the group, to the blond he had called Smith, and then glared at Sora, Donald and Goofy.

His cape behind him animated with a quick turn, his arm snapping to the trio of heroes, “Who are you??” Donald was immediately ticked off, tapping his foot against the floor while crossing his arms. Sora and Goofy quickly glared at Donald, shaking their heads slightly as Donald groaned, then relaxed his posture. For all they knew, these men could turn them into prisoners permanently.

“Sora, Donald, and Goofy,” Sora introduced them quickly.

“They helped us defeat those creatures, took them out like nothing!” the man with the cap from earlier announced, standing next to John’s other side.

The elder man’s eyes seemed to glimmer, “Oh, did they, Thomas? The culprits must have been those people, the savages!”

“We didn’t see anyone,” Goofy explained. “It was a Heartless no doubt.”

“What are Heartless?” John asked.

“They’re creatures who want to take the hearts of people. That’s probably why that one came to attack your camp,” Sora insinuated.

“Take the hearts of…people?” John narrowed his eyes, “That seems like a tall tale.”

“But we all saw it!” the ginger man announced again. Several of the men nodded in agreement.

“It is work of the savages, I just _know_ it. Blasted creatures of dark skin; they will do anything to hide anything from us in our land! _Our_ gold!” A murmur of agreement rang across the group, making Sora, Donald and Goofy shift uncomfortably.

“We don’t know if they sent the Heartless. We don’t even know who they are,” Sora defended. However he was met with a pointed finger, making his temper slightly flare.

“Don’t let the eyes deceive you, boy. They’re the ones behind these creatures, and their attacks! They want to slaughter us all!” the boastful man shouted, walking a few paces back, and then turning to face them again.

“You don’t think-“ Goofy whispered to Donald.

“No! Of course not!” Sora turned, interrupting Donald’s words before they could reply. “Aseles is fine.”

“Aseles, who’s Aseles?” John interacted yet again, a rise of concern faint in his eyes.

“Aseles is our friend. She was helping us fight off the Heartless, but she got separated.”

“How can you be so sure it was not a trap?” the man of lavender announced again, rolling his eyes impatiently to Sora, as if waiting for him to get the hint already. “The world is not as peaceful or happy as you make it out to be. Back to work, men!” The trio was left fuming as the men parted ways, leaving Donald, Goofy and Sora to contemplate their judgement. No, it couldn’t have been a plan, how would they know to separate them?

“The guy is a cracked nut,” Donald mumbled bitterly.

“Tell me about it,” John suddenly scoffed, shaking his head after the ordering man, “Ratcliffe is never the life of a party.” The group blinked of his statement, the soldier rolling his eyes, “I wish the old man could just keep his act together when talking about savages.”

“They really aren’t savages, right?” Goofy blinked.

“Hmm…hard to tell, but they have notbeen the greeting party either. Heck, they might have sent those Heartless you say, cannot be entirely sure,” John shrugged, stroking his jaw to his pointed chin.

“I think we should go look for Aseles,” Sora swallowed, exhaling sharply from the rush of worries, “To make sure she’s safe.”

“Yeah,” Donald and Goofy nodded.

“Hey, sounds like an adventure. I will go as well,” John replied enthusiastically, shifting his gear on him properly.

“Uh…you sure? Won’t big guy over there get angry?” Sora thumbed.

“Ratcliffe has things covered here,” John waved a hand and straightened up. “I scouted the area for a while; you will need help navigating the land to help find your friend.”

“Yeah, thanks a lot,” Sora replied, a small smile crossing his face.

“It is not a problem, repaying the favor,” John grinned. “We will start this way. The land is flatter, and expands as we head into the woods…”

Sora was sure Aseles was fine; she could take care of herself until they found her. Though, this nauseating feeling was beginning to creep up beneath his feet. Something in the forest was filling the sky with tension….

“Please, be careful,” Sora whispered under his breath as he followed Smith with Donald and Goofy.

ASELES’ POV:

Something told her to run…something told her to fight. Something told her to do _something_.

“Ahh!” Her back slammed against the bark of a nearby tree, her face contorting from the pain of splinters nailing into her back. It repeated again, again, and again- “Ahh! Tch!”

Her body tensed in Vanitas’ grip, and her hands snapped onto the powerful wrist that held her throat. She felt his gloved fingers dig into her jaw, lifting her face up forcefully to make her look at his. She coughed up the residing water in her lungs, and Vanitas’ grip relaxed to let her do so. That worried her further; was he going to be the one to end it?

The prickling of her skin increased tenfold, knowing the impending doom that awaited her. Surely, he would show no mercy, no hesitation to take her out now. She was alone, separated from Sora and the group, from Leon and Axel. No one knew where she was, and even if she were to escape, she did not know where to go.

“Got all the water out?” Vanitas asked politely. Aseles avoided his gaze, but when his grip hardened, she looked to him to accept his presence. His dark suit was gone, and replaced with a dark shirt, and belted pants. His gloves reached to the very edge of his wrists, with holes baring his knuckles. A leather jacket rested around his back and shoulders, looking worn out but tight and folded around his upper arms. His hair rested in front of his forehead, shadowing his features and eyes further.

“I think it’s fair that you sacrifice some of your time for me, considering you haven’t been very polite to me the few times we have met. Unless you would rather me beat the said debt out of you, we can do that too.” He did not wait for a response, and he simply…let her go. Aseles stumbled slightly, gripping her throat to relieve the pressure Vanitas had laid there. She shuddered heavily from his presence, and didn’t buy his easy-going attitude. Her eyes scanned the sides rapidly, planning a way to escape.

“If you try to run, I’ll cut your kneecaps off,” Vanitas informed flatly without looking at her, fixing his gloved hand. His neck craned to the side slightly, his eyes gazing to the riverbank with his back to her.

Aseles swallowed, trying to make sense of his presence here, specifically to her, “What d-do you want?”

“I would like to have a chat with you,” Vanitas looked over to her, a concealed smirk lingering upon his lips.

“No, that can’t be it-“ Aseles stayed still, feeling Vanitas’ arm suddenly swing across, and hook over her shoulders. She flinched from his touch, and her feet resisted to move as he began to walk her a bit forward to stand in the middle of the open area. The river was only a few yards in front of them, her fear of drowning now lingering at the back of her head.

“I think we got off on the wrong foot, don’t you agree?” Vanitas joked absentmindedly, shaking her shoulders a bit. Aseles avoided his gaze, receiving a scoff followed by a small chuckle. “I get it. You’re holding a grudge. I _completely_ understand! So, here’s the deal- we’ll make a deal. We’ll talk this out, and see if you change your mind about some things.” He let go of her, and he bend his upper body so their heads were barely touching. His arm extended forward toward the river, as if he were showing her the wonders of it.

“I’ve known you for a while, Aseles. And you shift and turn, like that river. You are pulled in many directions, and at times, you look so uncertain of what lays ahead of you. You like to think and plan, or anticipate what might go wrong. But the matter of the fact is, you _never_ know, Aseles. You like to have answers, and I will be glad to give you that. Like the way I saved you just now.”

“What game are you playing?” Aseles hissed, her clubs of hands trembling. Vanitas tilted his head, but then he laughed a moment after, drumming his fingers along her bare arm. Her skin rung low in shivering tunes, and hoped Vanitas would not notice how timid she really was.

“Oh, you still think I’m playing? No, of course not. I’m here to offer you a solution,” Vanitas extended his opposite hand out to her. The instant memory of Maleficent appeared in mind, and she backed up a step, catching Vanitas’ attempt to persuade her.

He caught her hesitation, “Oh, I see. I know that look on your face. You think I’ll trick you-“

“No, you don’t know me!” Aseles fired, taking a step back and out of his clutch. Her arms held her defense, and her keyblade immediately flashed out. She gripped the handle with both hands,  and tried her best to firm her hold on it.

Vanitas stood unimpressed, his lips now a firm line with his arms dangling at his sides. His head tilted to the side, but his eyes kept locked onto hers. He hummed in response, his eyes descending gracefully to Aseles’ hands where her keyblade laid. She withdrew her arms a bit, suddenly feeling naked of his inspection.

“What do you know about the keyblade?” Vanitas asked casually.

Aseles blinked, “…What?”

“The big key in _your_ hand,” Vanitas flatly pointed out with a waving hand.

Aseles pressed her lips together, “I’m not…sure-“

“Know how you got it? What it’s there for? Do you know who gave it to you…?” Vanitas drew out slowly.

Aseles eyes expanded by a fraction, and her keyblade somewhat lowered, the tip no longer aimed at Vanitas, “Who….gave it to me? Doesn’t it choose its master?”

“That’s what they told you?” Vanitas scoffed, leaning against the bark of a nearby tree. His arms crossed loosely on his chest, his fingers fiddling with small wisps of Darkness drawn out. Aseles stared at the ground quizzically, then lifting to stare at her keyblade touching the ground.

“What would _you_ know?” Aseles glared, strengthening her hold onto the handle.

Vanitas extended his fingers out to the side, his other hand cupping his opposite elbow, “I’ve been around a while now. I may have been dormant inside of Sora, but that doesn’t mean I’ve been sleeping this entire time, or lost memory of everything I knew beforehand.” Aseles said nothing and Vanitas continued, his eyes vigilant to her, “Everything you know might not be the truth. Because they’re your friends, you expect them to tell you the truth, _always_? I don’t think you feel the same way; you hide a lot, I can tell from the way you isolate yourself from them. You’re missing something-“ Vanitas walked toward Aseles, but she did not dare move from his path. He stood in front of her, and his golden orbs bore into her insecurities, “-and you need help finding it.”

“Shut up! You’re wrong, you’re wrong!” Aseles argued loudly, pushing Vanitas back.

He barely stumbled, and kept his frame in place, “I don’t believe I am.” Aseles resorted to gripping her head, her keyblade released and clattering to the ground. Her eyes shut closed, trying to remove Vanitas from the vicinity of her mind. She had to keep him out, she had to keep him away, no matter what he said; his words were not genuine or safe.

“That Riku boy hasn’t told you?” Crap, no.

Aseles leisurely let herself go, and she turned her head. She backed her face back briefly, seeing Vanitas was standing right next to her, his face leaning so close she could spot her reflection in his irises. Vanitas crooked his lips, satisfied of her attention.

“He’s hiding something from you, but you know that already,” Vanitas replied coolly. His hand pressed against the back of her neck, making her skin heat of his close presence, “You can tell, by the way he looks at you. He looks concerned, withdrawn, conflicted with himself. When is he not; a boy that caved into the Darkness, and learned some form of redemption to reclaim his friends back. Yet, that doesn’t mean he’s broken bad habits.”

“H-How do you know?? How would _you_ know?” Aseles exhaled out shakily. Her eyes were captured by his, unable to distinguish the awful grin that began to creep onto his face.

“Would you like to find out?” His free hand lifted, and his fingers expanded with a pulse of Darkness. The edges of his digits illuminated with a bright purple, mist and strings clouding Aseles’ vision when she looked to it. Her mouth parted gently, but she was unable to say anything. Vanitas leaned closer, his cheek pressing right beside her as they both gazed to his energized palm.

“I can tell you about your keyblade, about Riku, about Ansem the Wise. I can show you Darkness, and the answers that lay within it. Aseles, don’t you want to remember _everything_?”

Aseles nervously gazed to the dark orb forming in Vanitas’ palm, “I d-do.”

“What are you waiting for? What is keeping you back, hmm?” Vanitas questioned. She said nothing; he was none too shy to pressure her, “Is it the Light? Is it judgment? Is it… _your_ friends? Afraid of what they’ll say? What they’ll think? Did you fail them again, Aseles? Do you think caving into the Darkness will exile you once more?”

“You’re trying to get into my head!” Aseles retorted angrily, her eyebrows scrunching and dipping into the flat plate of her nose’s bridge. Her teeth snapped onto one another for comfort, to straighten her conflicting thoughts. She tried to ignore Vanitas’ embrace around her, and she squinted greatly from how bright the dark orb in his hand got. She could literally smell the dark musk of the magic, drowning her sense into a prickling discomfort.

“I’m not trying to get into your head,” Vanitas coolly replied out. His hand held the base of her neck, his eyes locking right onto hers, “You’re already lost on where to go. I am merely lending you a way to get what you want.”

“No, not this way!” Aseles shook her head vigorously. Her hand tried to push Vanitas back, but the male held himself firm, solid in front of her. His arm had now turned to concrete, and held her prisoner in his grasp.

“The Darkness is not your enemy,” Vanitas continued, unfazed of her reluctance, “you were only taught it was. The Darkness holds the answers you seek; don’t you want to remember everything that was wrongly taken from you? Don’t you want to finally becoming a Somebody?”

Aseles froze, her eyes expanding to a new level of terror and shock. Vanitas loomed over her, his grip full force as the spark of Darkness raged into his palm. Aseles could feel the dark wisps caress her face like thick tentacles, and were now beginning to glide around her neck and damp hair. The air grew immensely cold, but the heat from Aseles’ face rose from how close Vanitas was.

“How about it, Aseles? Want to dive in?”

She shut her eyes, taken by the familiar voice in her head that faintly lingered. The color of gray and green flooded her sight, and she had to back away from Vanitas’ grip. He unexpectedly let her go, watching her intently. The dark mass in his hand dispersed.

“Don’t like my idea?” Vanitas swiftly grasped forward, tugging Aseles’ arm to him. She winced from his tight grip, her eyes wide and peering up to him in defiance.

“I can’t trust you!” Aseles fought out, cowering away from his stare.

“Have it your way. I tried.” The struggle was suddenly lax and feeble, and Aseles stumbled in her place. Her eyes flickered open, anticipating a hit or a punch but…none came. Her lungs finally caved to the air around, and she opened her orbs fully to look around properly. She was alone….but the idea of being let go so easily frightened her further.

“Va-nitas?” Aseles called out, her head hurriedly whirling around. She picked up her keyblade from the ground hurriedly, and she pressed her back against the nearest tree for support. Her breath quaked and fogged around her, despite the high noon of the sun.

Something snapped within her barrier, and the hot spill of fire ran down her face. Her back slipped and dropped against the bark until finally she was sitting on her rear. Her keyblade laid lifeless in front of her feet, her arms snaking and clutching her knees. Her face burrowed into her limbs, trying to curl herself into nothingness.

_“Don’t you want to finally becoming a Somebody?”_

Why?

Why did everything in her body shut down after that?

That one word: Somebody. Why did it hurt so much to have it be said to her? Was it the fact that she was unable to remember everything, or was it that even her enemies couldn’t see her as a full-fledged being?

Why, how could he say such a thing?

She was unsure of what it was, but how bothering and troublesome the words held and grappled at her core. It dipped and clutched whatever remained in her sane set of thoughts, and once it ripped out, everything fell into a havoc mess. Her mouth parted open as the despair of her mood grew tenfold, her hands pushing to conceal her eyes. She had to ignore this feeling, this unknown, ghastly feeling. She had to...in some way.

A pair of footsteps approached, along with a mumbling, soft tune of a voice. A language was spoken, but it was one Aseles didn’t understand. It wasn’t Vanitas from the sound of it; it sounded like women.

“Pocahontas, you should not go near her!” one voice urged out of the two beings in front of Aseles. Aseles slowly raised her wet, red eyes, unable to clearly see past her damp and limp bangs. The rest of her body felt cold, burrowed into the shadows of the trees. She must look so unapproachable right now for the reluctant woman to keep a distance. However, Aseles saw a darkened face of the second woman before her, a pair of black eyes watching her concernedly with red lips opening to ask her something. She didn’t catch the language yet again, and said nothing.

“What is your name?” the second woman before her questioned clearly. Her ebony hair gracefully swooped down her shoulders, with a white shell hanging as a trinket of her sapphire-tiled necklace. She wore a one shouldered dress made out of animal skin, and on her right she bore a red mark tattoo that wrapped around her skin.

“A-Aseles,” she sniffed out, not realizing she had been crying since Vanitas had left.

“You can speak,” the mysterious woman pointed out. Aseles nodded faintly. “Are you hurt?”

“N-No,” Aseles shook her head, “I mean- I don’t think so.” Vanitas didn’t bother hurting her, but....jeezes, there must be something behind it. It was his second chance at ending her, so why didn’t he? It was such a terrible question to linger on, but there must be a purpose to it, Aseles felt it. His demeanor toward her had changed, planning something secretive and alarming without her awareness.

“Here, stand up,” the woman reached, but Aseles did not move to hold the woman’s hand. She looked at it, and flinched visibly from the dark material surrounding her palm, as if it were Vanitas’ deceiving palm.

A moment passed, “Pocahontas, we have to go. Surely your father will be waiting for you.”

“We cannot leave her here,” the woman named Pocahontas countered gently. She gradually slid her arm around Aseles’ shoulders, and before the brunette knew it, she was standing. She flinched greatly from the erupting bruises and wounds she received from the fall, and her fingers soothed across the nape of her neck for comfort. Aseles’ eyes lifted to the concerned Pocahontas who brushed her hair back and repeatedly inspected the younger’s arms and legs. The wary woman from before took a step forward, catching Aseles’ attention now.

Her clothes were separated into a two-piece, both made of animal skin with her skirt reaching around the top of her knees. Her hair was instead tied up in a secure ponytail, unlike Pocahontas’ free locks. Aseles realized both of them were barefoot, and harbored intricate, handcrafted jewels around their wrists, necks and ankles.

“She needs our help, Nakoma,” Pocahontas replied firmly. She stood taller than any woman Aseles had met, and that genuinely gave her confidence. She rubbed her eyes off quickly, and tried her best to squeeze out the water from her soaked dress. Her legs seemed to have taken a heavy hit on the water; they were still red from the impact.

“You need a doctor. Come to the village with us,” Pocahontas suggested, holding Aseles’ arm tenderly.

“Are you sure that is a good idea?” the other woman whispered hastily, her fingers clutching each other in a fiddling manner.

“Aseles, are you lost?” Pocahontas continued, only smiling after her friend sighed in defeat.

“I got separated...from my friends,” Aseles began. “A large beast is lurking in the woods, and it chased me away from them.”

“Oh dear, you must have some wounds,” Pocahontas lifted her arm, and checked along her sides for any sign of injury, “We must take you to the village; you are not safe out here by yourself with such a beast running amok. My name is Pocahontas, and this is Nakoma.”

“It’s nice to meet you,” Aseles nodded gently, feeling the woman wrap her hand securely around Aseles’ palm.

“This way; we will lead you.” Shades of emeralds and greens blurred and occupied Aseles’ vision, though she did not bother to distinguish the exotic shrubs and ferns around her. She lifted her feet over rocks and branches, and picked up her pace when she needed to. She stuck relatively close to Pocahontas despite not knowing her that well; the woman emitted this self-reliant energy Aseles was lacking, and she felt protected…unless Vanitas decided to pay a surprise visit.

The area opened up immensely, Aseles taken aback by how far the sea in front of them stretched. A large river connected to the edge of the beach, and hundreds of trees barricaded the village they were in. Several huts of different sizes overtook the flattened land, but it was far more diverse than the one where the other settlers were; they respected the weeds and grass, with some moss even growing along the hinges and footings of the structured wood they used. The huge crowd of colored individuals turned, the women holding their nearby children and the men raising their shoulders and spears in hand. Aseles swallowed, but she was pulled to continue walking, both her and Nakoma growing wary of the stares that followed. Only Pocahontas continued to march forward in a strong stride, not missing a beat as some of the villagers approached to have a closer look at Aseles.

“No one has seen someone like you,” Pocahontas merely reminded Aseles who nodded in understanding. Her clothes were far more modern than what anyone was wearing here; her skin was tanned, but Aseles accepted that it was a color that couldn’t be easily blended into the crowd. Was it her hair, her eyes, the way she stood or walked? Or were these people genuinely curious of who she was?

“Pocahontas!” a male voice boomed greatly from an appropriate sized, wooden shed. The man’s hand moved the rag that hung as a doorway, with an elder to his right and a younger, warrior-fit man to his left. All three froze, but the main leader of the three narrowed his eyes, spear clutched firmly in palm. He looked like Pocahontas, except for some features along her face. They both stood boldly in front of each other, but it was when the younger man beside him grunted offensively, and pointed his spear to Aseles’ direction that made her hesitate to approach further. The elder’s hair ran down the front of his shoulders and chest like silky, white threads, his fragile and shortened stature adorned in beads and layers of animal skin.

“Pocahontas, who have you brought?” the leader of the village bellowed questionably. The other villagers gathered, and Aseles did not like the idea that she was now surrounded if they planned to take her as prisoner. “Outsiders are not welcome to our place.”

“Father,” Pocahontas let go of Aseles, and bowed her head respectfully down, “I brought a young woman who was attacked in the woods. She has injuries, and she needs our help.”

“Step aside, Pocahontas.” Aseles’ eyes widened to see the equipped man approaching, Nakoma quickly moving to the side. Aseles was left bare in front of the father figure, and she cowered a bit from how intense the man’s stare was; his dark eyes reminded her of burnt coal, the tails of his animal skin dangling as the man leaned forward. His long hair resembled much of Pocahontas’, although it was combed to the left side of his head, leaving the right shaved portion of it free. The décor of hawk feathers immediately built a stature and presence versus everyone else, and Aseles wondered if it was fitting to call Pocahontas a princess or royalty of sorts.

“Who are you, and what were your intentions in the woods?” the man declared potently.

“M-My name…is Aseles,” she began carefully. “I was separated from my friends...” The man’s eyes narrowed, and from the corner of her eye she saw the closest set of villagers eying each other intently. Pocahontas pressed her full lips together in a line, while Nakoma stood timidly beside her. The man did not stir his stance, so Aseles continued.

“A creature, a beast attacked us, and I lured it away. I got lost, and-“

“POWHATAN!” Aseles jumped in total surprise, and she was glad she was not the only one. Running from the woods was a group of men resembling much of the other warriors of the community, dressed all in animal skins and bearing painted marking along their faces and arms. In the middle of the four was a tallest warrior, black hair swaying and licking his broad shoulders with a bird’s feather hanging on the left side. His chest had a distinct, painted mark of bear paws. Along his back was strapped a bow and a quiver of arrows, the same said for the rest of the men around him. However, in this man’s particular arms hung a loose form, a body of another. The crowd gasped at the mere sight, and Aseles almost stumbled from how heavy the wind carried behind Pocahontas’ father when he walked.

“Kocoum, what has befallen our brother?” the leader hastily exclaimed. The elder speedily rushed past Aseles, and she felt relieved to see she was accompanied by Pocahontas and Nakoma once more.

“Our brother was attacked by the white men of the shore,” the man named Kocuom responded. Aseles’ mouth clenched closed; were they the same men who were attacked by the monster from earlier? It was no Heartless from what Aseles’ could tell. Surely, they weren’t bound with any ties to the creature, it attacked them too. Or could it be that these men really were dangerous? Oh gosh, and Sora, Donald and Goofy were with them. Were they alright??

“The wound is...strange,” the elder responded, his eyes quizzically staring at limp man. The one named Powhatan frowned at the sight, and all anger washed from his face when the elder turned to him, “He will not make it through the night.”

“Aseles?” Pocahontas questioned, and instead of stopping her, she walked alongside her.

“Excuse me,” Aseles announced from behind Pocahontas’ father. All eyes now averted to her, with Powhatan sharply turning, and eying Aseles intently, “I can help.”

“A child like you, help?” Powhatan attempted not to snap, the sight of an unknown visitor now fusing his anger back. Aseles guessed he suspected that she was not from around here, but he wasn’t wrong. She had to show them she posed no threat if she planned to recover here.

“Father, perhaps she has a way,” Pocahontas encouraged, settling her lean fingers onto Aseles’ shoulders. Her father gazed to her, and Pocahontas’ presence worked much like a spell of its own. His hot attitude cooled, and he stepped aside, letting Aseles entry to the group of men standing before him. Aseles swallowed, but walked determinedly forward. The elder of the tribe took a step back, Aseles unsure if it were fear or mindful of space. Kocoum, the one who carried the injured man narrowed his eyes to the brunette, although the rest of the men were curious of her attire and appearance.

Aseles exhaled, and she held out her hand out, fingers spread and open like an outstretched wing; the bundle of soft light bloomed at her fingertips, and the next second her palm clutched the handle of her keyblade. A sea of murmurs, gasps and exclamations followed, but Kocoum stayed firm. His eyes, however, grew uneasiness when Aseles took a step forward to his direction. Aseles looked down to the man who was now gasping for air, moaning in breaths of agony. His eyes flickered to stay open, unaware of her stance.

The teen held out her keyblade’s tip to the bloody injury at the man’s side, and she frowned at the sight; it was human inflicted, a gunshot. She shook her head, and let the keyblade possess her mind. An illumination of gold arose, and Aseles knew she wouldn’t be able to hold it much longer. She pressed the tip against the man’s skin, who shuddered from how cold the keyblade must be. Then suddenly, his entire outline of skin radiated with a golden seam, this time catching interest and immediate attention from the crowd. Aseles grunted from how quickly her State had drained, and she stepped back to leave the recovering, inhaling man room to stand. Kocoum let him go, the entire crowd now in awe of the event. The warrior checked his side profusely with his comrades, flabbergasted and taken of the complete removal of his mark.

“It is something I truly have never seen,” the elder announced. Aseles felt the instant burn on her cheeks, and she looked among the crowd to see all eyes were targeted to her, especially to the keyblade in her hand. She immediately called it off, but the flash of its disappearance must have made things worse to grab attention.

“Child, what is it that you are here for?” Powhatan’s large hand cupped her shoulder, making her turn to look at him. “You do not resemble the men on the shore.”

Aseles exhaled, trying her best to not pass out from the lack of energy, “A creature is lurking in your woods, and I came with my friends to stop it. We were separated, and I’m not sure how I’m going to find them. I didn’t come to attack your people, I mean you no harm.”

“The creature, we have seen it in the very center of the woods,” Powhatan replied curtly, digging the blunt end of his spear to the ground for support. “It is nothing we have ever faced, a dark presence that sends one’s happy thoughts into an abyss of Darkness. If you arrived to banish it, I carry terrible news that it was brought by the white demons on the beach, on the other side of the land.”

“That is where my friends are,” Aseles reminded herself out loud, her hands turning into fists. She was growing more worried by the second. What if they _did_ hurt them? She only just met them, and she helped them blindly without knowing what kind of threat they posed.

“Then you must rest, to reunite with them; the journey will be long, it is needed for you to gather all your strength.” Powhatan reached up, and laid his palm onto Aseles’ head. He bowed his head briefly, the rest of the villagers following suite. Pocahontas smiled, taking a stand next to her and hugging her arm.

“You are welcome in our village, Aseles. You are _our_ sister,” Powhatan greeted with a smile.

LATER

SORA’S POV:

Nothing was looking promising; everything was full of thick and harsh woods. John led the trail while he, Donald and Goofy followed close behind. Sora somewhat questioned the fact that John was equipped with a rifle, but guessed it was because of the beast that was lurking in the woods. Surely he wouldn’t use it on something else...Memories of the Deep Jungle and Clayton touched an uncomfortable nerve though.

The land was far denser than the wielder anticipated, with several different kinds of clearings within and out of the heavy trees. They stopped to get a refreshment from the riverbanks, and John handed them what looked like biscuits and crackers from his pockets. Goofy offered John a potion further into the trip, and the man was stumped on what a potion was, and what it did. Yet once he took a drink, he was stunned and amazed of how good he felt.

“Better than I have ever felt in many years,” John joked, wiping his mouth with his right forearm, his left hand holding his iron rifle. “What is inside of that?”

“Magic,” Goofy smiled widely.

“......No, honestly. What is in it?”

“It really is magic,” Donald defended.

“.......Very funny,” John didn’t buy it, scoffing while leading the way again. “You are not from around here, are you?”

“Um...far away, actually,” Sora replied after he was silently nudged by Donald. “Which is why we need to find our friend. The Heartless might still be lurking in the woods.”

“So this friend, how much does she mean to you?” John asked from in front, tilting his head to eye Sora who was closest.

Sora quirked his mouth, keyblade gripped in hand, “A lot. Wait, why are you asking _me_ this?”

John suddenly smirked, flattening his iron hat so his blond locks curled a bit out to the sides, “Merely collecting necessary information.”

Donald snickered from the back, Sora quickly shooting him a glare, “It’s not funny.”

“He was only asking a question, Sora. Why are you getting sensitive about it?” Donald teased, making Sora blow air up impatiently from his parted, bottom lip. The edges of his bangs flickered before shooting outwards again, but the words continued to linger in thought.

Why _was_ he getting sensitive about it? It’s not like the question was anything new....right? Aseles was their friend, and she already did enough to keep his friends safe. She was strong, far one of the strongest friends he’s ever come across. Did she not realize that? She appeared to doubt it; maybe he wasn’t saying it enough to her? No, she must know how he feels about her....but something told Sora it might be something...far much more than that. Was it possible...that...he-no. Aseles saw him as a friend, that was it. They were fine as friends, better even. There was hardly any romance in their circle.... _right_?

_“You wanted one, didn’t you?”  
_

_“A paopu fruit?”_

_“If two people share one, their hearts become intertwined. They’ll be a part of each other’s lives, no matter what.”_

_“What are you talking about??”  
_

_“Hahaha!”_

“Do you hear that?” John announced. The group paused in their stride, Sora dimming his sense of sight for his hearing; it sounded like a waterfall in the distance. John hurriedly led the trio, and moments later they were at the edge of a misty bank.

The whimsical area certainly was unlike anything Sora had seen, yet somewhat universal and quaint like the waterfall in the Deep Jungle. The reeds and weeds in the large pond wavered and sunk with the waves in rhythm, and the droplets of fallen water created soft trickles along the glimmering coat of the surface. Sora made his way to the closest boulder, making sure to not fall into the water. Donald and Goofy followed suite, and when they made it to the other bank of the land, Sora noticed that John Smith was inspecting the land carefully. Did he notice something that they didn’t?

“John?” Goofy called out, waving him over. John redirected his attention over, and he too followed their path to the land.

“Hmm?” A rustling sound cut sharply from behind, Donald and Sora squinting their eyes into the shadows of the trees. Could it be?

“Aseles?” Sora called out. The area got quiet. Then-

“Watch out!!” An animal cry broke the tranquil atmosphere.

“Wha-AHH!” Donald yelped as he stumbled back into the water, an arrow cutting past their heads. The rustling increased, and the yelling followed, with howls and shouts of numerous voices.

“It’s an ambush!” Sora shouted, and everyone ducked onto the ground with a series of arrows and spears flying across the air. Sora swiftly stood with keyblade in hand, seeing a group of dark-skinned fighters headed their way. The wielder made an attempt to show he meant no harm, but the second he had to duck from another protruding arrow, he knew no negotiation was going to be made.

Instead, he swung his keyblade across, teeth gritting, “FIRE!” A blaze roared to form around his group, Donald doing the exact same. Hollers of anger swelled into the air, the arrows and spears being tossed burning almost instantly at the edge of their fiery cage. The sound of a large bang tossed Sora’s senses against a hard wall, and he shuddered enough that his fire spell died. He swiftly turned to see smoke and fog collect around, blinding their view completely. Donald released an Aero spell to clear the air. Once it did, the only scenery of the waterfall and some scorched shrubs were all that were left, John having disappeared.

“Who were they?” Goofy questioned immediately, wiping off the collected soot from his hat.

Sora looked among the trees, his chest heaving of the quick scare, “They looked like people.”

“The savages?” Donald asked with an angry glare.

“Maybe they thought we were Heartless…” Goofy began, but his words drained on with hesitation.

“We don’t even look like them,” Sora defended quickly, gripping his keyblade. “There’s no way they could mistake us as Heartless.”

“But there was a lot of fog,” Goofy added, his shoulders dropping to relieve the tension.

“They ambushed us!” Donald shook his fist, “We didn’t even do anything!”

Sora gritted his teeth, and looked around once again, “....Donald’s right.” He straightened up, exhaling, “Come on, let’s go find John. He must have chased after them.”

“What if we run into those guys again?” Goofy quickly questioned. Donald looked at him, then at Sora for commands.

Sora took a moment, but replied firmly, “Keep on your guard. C’mon.” He didn’t want to make conclusions; his impatience to find Aseles was getting the better of him. What mattered was finding her first, now knowing that the Heartlesses were not the only threat in this world. Night was approaching faster than he expected, and he hoped she had found some place to stay for the arriving night.

ASELES’ POV:

Nakoma had insisted Aseles for a change of clothes, but she thought better against it; her clothes were made specifically for encountering danger, and she didn’t want to risk taking the chance of running into some Heartless that might wander in the village. Pocahontas bandaged her up pretty well, and helped her sit up against the wall of the hut. There, they conversed about one another, though Aseles was more intrigued in Pocahontas’ story.

Having lost of her mother at an early age of her life, Pocahontas’ father was the leader of their Indian tribe, who made sure their resources were balanced to accommodate everyone on the land and out of it; they held other tribes across the sea, and communicated with one another with messengers and smoke signals. The people here were trustworthy and generous, providing Aseles with food while being mended by Pocahontas and the elder. They were interested in the keyblade she held, but it didn’t surprise Aseles they had never seen something like it before. It would have worried her if they did..

“Is Nakoma your sister?” Aseles felt a small tinge on her tongue as she said that. She looked after the elder leaving the hut after instructing them when they should change the cloths. The two smiled, and turned to look at one another inside the well-lit hut.

“Oh, we are, but not related,” she smiled.

“It looks like you are, which is great really,” Aseles quirked a smile, watching as Pocahontas cleaned her hands in the bowl of water nearby.

“We have known each other since we were practically infants; I never go anywhere without her, or she is dragged into whatever trouble I get myself into.”

“Hmm, I can relate to that, in a way,” Aseles chuckled softly.

“Do you have family?” Pocahontas turned, sitting criss-crossed and attentively looking to Aseles.

The brunette shook her head, “Um...no. I mean, my family passed away, you could say...”

“Oh, I am sorry to have asked.”

“No, it’s okay. My friends, they’re my family,” Aseles reassured, attempting to remove the frown on the woman’s face.

“Oh, that is charming. What are your friends like?” Pocahontas insisted, tilting her head so her black, long hair rested over one shoulder.

“Um, they’re good friends, great. The village here reminds me a lot of them,” Aseles smiled fondly of their image. “They’re my family, how everyone here is your family.”

The Indian woman beamed gently, “That sounds wonderful. And your home?”

“Kind of big, with buildings and bridges, and an old, rusted castle in the distance. Grass and flowers are growing now; even though its old, it always feels like its new whenever I go.”

“Oh, so you travel often?”

“Yeah, you could say that,” Aseles rubbed her bandaged leg. She tried her best to not bring up the idea of travel very often, fearing that she might make an Ariel out of the Indian princess; she didn’t need another father to be on her bad side.

Their conversation stretched for hours, until Pocahontas realized she had to get some corn from the fields to eat later. Aseles bid her goodbye for the moment, and took the time to walk around the village. Surely after, Nakoma came by, and asked where Pocahontas was. Aseles reassured her she would be back from the picking fields, and Nakoma took it to heart that her friend wasn’t going to get into any trouble this time. She instead stayed with Aseles for the time being.

Nakoma was the opposite of Pocahontas, but she too carried a friendly and warm approach; she aided Aseles on getting around when she needed to, and was now changing her cloths for her wounds. Aseles winced at the sight of her bared skin, seeing she was far more damaged than she had realized. She used half of a potion to get herself on her feet the very least, and knew it was best to save her other survived materials for later when she needed it. _In case_ she needed it.

“Ow, thank you,” Aseles sighed gently, rubbing the back of her shoulder. She faced the edge of the land, one leg dangling over with the tip of her boot touching the rushing river below. Behind she knew several of the villagers were looking to them, and Aseles paid no mind to their curious nature. Nakoma nodded, and took a seat beside her. The land was beautiful, no matter what time of day it was; the afternoon was drawing to a close, with streaks of red and purple branding the sky.  

“We hope you feel better soon,” Nakoma added, making Aseles smile softly.

“Thank you. You didn’t have to take care of me, but I appreciate all the help,” Aseles replied. “You’re Pocahontas’ best friend. We were talking earlier and she couldn’t stop talking about you.”

Nakoma blushed faintly, giggling softly, “Nothing embarrassing?”

Aseles chuckled, shaking her head, “That I can’t say. But she’s lucky to have someone like you watching out for her.”

“If I do not take care of her, who else will?” Nakoma reached to pick a blade of grass, fiddling with it between her fingers.

“Yeah, that’s true,” she giggled, scratching and running her fingers through her locks of dark brown hair.

“Kocoum?” Nakoma whispered gently. Aseles turned over with a dropped shoulder, seeing the man from earlier making haste to the two. Nakoma stood to acknowledge his presence, and helped Aseles up when she started to do the same. She brushed off Aseles’ back from the collected twigs and leaves, the two sharing a glance before facing the warrior man.

“Nakoma, where is Pocahontas?” Kocoum asked, almost ignoring the fact that Aseles was there. She didn’t pay mind to it, but wondered what was up with him. She knew Pocahontas faced the likelihood of marrying him, as she had stated earlier, but the two were....not compatible, at least to her eyes. Pocahontas was approachable and kind, while Kocoum walked around with a mean and judging look. Maybe it was the fact Aseles brought an injured man to his feet again that set him off.

“I-I haven’t seen her,” Nakoma replied, biting her bottom lip.

“You,” Kocoum shot his stern eyes to Aseles, “Have you seen Pocahontas?”

“She told me she went to the corn fields, last time I saw her,” Aseles answered back.

“If you both see her, tell her I am looking for her,” he replied with one last look before departing to the group of men standing guard at the edge of the woods.

“Is he always _that_ stern?” Aseles asked once he was out of earshot.

“Kocoum has always been as such; he is the leading warrior of the tribe. He acts that way because he needs to put up a strong face for everyone.” Nakoma sighed, “I suppose I should go look for her.”

“Alright, I’ll go with,” Aseles added.

“But, you’re still injured…”

“No, I’m better now. And I don’t want you going by yourself. Are the corn fields far?”

“Hmm, no, not that far. I will show you the way.”  The distance of drumming and damp footsteps settled to quietness the farther they trekked, replaced with the sounds of rustling leaves and snapping twigs beneath their feet. The air was fresh, with pine and green caging Aseles’ senses; the sight around the orange and yellow treetops glistened in the setting sun with shadows now dimming among the dirt, soft floor. It would not take long for them to drown into the oncoming night.

They arrived in the large field of planation, but among the women who were gathering the food there, none of them were Pocahontas. Nakoma took the initiative to ask around, yet Aseles had a feeling she was never here to begin with. Did she go into the woods?

Going to the next plan, despite how much Nakoma disliked the idea, Aseles set foot into the woods first with Nakoma right behind her. Granted, the last time Nakoma went into the woods, they found Aseles curled up against the bark of the tree, afraid to interact with anyone or anything. But why would Pocahontas go off into the woods by herself?

“It is getting dark, and we have not found her yet…” Nakoma sighed, rubbing her arm briefly before crossing them protectively on her chest.

“Maybe she’s already back,” Aseles thought out loud, making a stop of a small open area.

“Maybe…” Nakoma mumbled to herself, Aseles able to pick up the words, “Why do you always run off?”

“C’mon, let’s head back-“

_And miss out on all the fun?_ Aseles halted in place, her eyes directing along the tall trees. The air dropped in several degrees, Nakoma instantly sticking against her back. Crap, what now?

“Who was that?” Nakoma gasped out.

“Vanitas,” Aseles mouthed angrily, swiftly flashing her keyblade in hand. “Show yourself!”

Warps of dark portals emerged, each springing creatures darkened creatures. They were lesser versions of the wolf from before.

“What are those?!” Nakoma cried out.

“Hide someplace safe!” Aseles commanded, both hands clutching her keyblade. “Go!” Nakoma didn’t wait to be told twice, quickly fleeing from the area and ducking behind some enclosed trees. Aseles paid mind to the approaching threats, and growled slightly from Vanitas’ chuckle in the air.

The first, center wolf charged, Aseles swinging her keyblade across to send it pouncing back. It infuriated the other two, both lunging to open Aseles’ defenses on the sides. She blocked effectively against the second, and sent the third flying in the air. The first wolf dashed in a quick slide, but Aseles stood readily, and struck her keyblade down against its scapula. The wolf was left disabled, and turned to ash at her feet. Aseles dodged the oncoming third wolf, but felt her body hit the floor from the unattended second. She winced from the heavy weight of it on top of her, its foaming teeth snarling and snapping at her keyblade’s neck. Aseles tried her best to kick it off, her eyes widening to see the second wolf fast approaching, and aiming to catch her head in its mouth.

Unexpectedly, it was pinned to the ground brutally, the end of a sharp spearhead having protruded through its skull. The spear was pulled back full force from the slumped, dissolving body, the weapon in Pocahontas’ hands. The fighting force on top of Aseles lessened, her body able to stand and aid Pocahontas who was pushing the creature back ruthlessly. In a matter of six quick strikes, the Heartless-like being was defeated, giving Aseles a sense of relief for now.

“It looks like you needed some help,” Pocahontas grinned.

“Yeah, thanks,” Aseles chuckled nervously, rubbing her face with a quick hand. She reminded herself to not get on Pocahontas’ bad side, if she did have one.

“That was-“ Nakoma trembled herself out of hiding, catching the two fighters’ attention.

“Are you alright? Are you injured?” Pocahontas hurried over, clasping her hand on her friend’s shoulder. Nakoma nodded shakily, watching Aseles who inspected the area briefly before walking over.

“Pocahontas, where did you go?!” Nakoma shot out angrily, making her friend remove her hold.

“I am sorry I worried you,” Pocahontas exhaled out, then turned to Aseles, “I would have been back sooner, but...I met one of them…” she replied.

Aseles raised an eyebrow, “One of them?”

Nakoma’s eyes widened, “Who did you meet??” It sounded like she already knew the answer.

“One of them, from the shore,” Pocahontas smiled softly, her eyes beamed with a radiating happiness. “He’s different, he is not what people in our village describe them to be-“

“ _Pocahontas_!” Nakoma interrupted, the tension of the two friends breaking surface.

“Shouldn’t you get to know them before you judge them?” Aseles relaxed the hold of her keyblade, looking to Nakoma questionably. The woman looked to Aseles, baffled of her defense for Pocahontas.

“Exactly. They are not as bad as they seem,” Pocahontas replied. “If father could listen, then maybe-“

“Pocahontas, you are just going to get in trouble,” Nakoma huffed sternly, narrowing her eyes.

“I do not want to start _any_ trouble,” her friend defended, offended of Nakoma’s harsh retort.

“I do not want any part of this, and you should not either. Kocoum is waiting for you,” Nakoma turned in her place, and did not lose a beat to start striding toward the village. Pocahontas frowned at her retreat, the spear slumped in her hand. The corners of her mouth drooped,  settlement of disappointment resting along her eyes.

“What was his name?” Aseles turned to Pocahontas, but she knew cheering up the princess would not be achieved this time around.

“Smith. John Smith,” she replied. “He is different…than what my father says.”

Aseles nodded gently, cradling her forearm in hand, “I believe you.”

 

Yet, none of the two parties would be able to anticipate the following events of the deep nightfall; all it took was the naive curiosity of two strangers, a jealous husband-to-be, and the sound of a gunshot from a loyal and clueless friend....


	15. Stronger

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Gosh I did not know how to title this. 
> 
> Hey, sorry. Yup, Finals are over, I'm a free bird (but not really). I hope you enjoy this chapter, sorry for the long wait. It's not as long as past chapters but it's something, right? 
> 
> As always, thank you readers so much for the love and support, I greatly appreciate it <3 Enjoy!
> 
> Sincerely,  
> Keys

_…How come you don’t……_  
  


_They always tell me what to do. They treat me like I’m the runt._

_…Do you know that feeling though…_

_When they order you around._

_Tell you what to do because they think it’s best for you?_  
  


_You know…I won’t tell you to do something…don’t want to do._  
  


_Is that so? I find it hard to believe._

_Not because it’s noble or kind, but because it’s a decent act._

_You would think people would know to not make other people do things they’re uncomfortable with._  
  


_It’s common sense._

_Or at least it should be._

_Because……..._

_Best friend?_

_We hardly know each other._

_Tch._

_I know……_

_Should I do the same?_

_Would you do the same for me?_

_If you…….I mean……to have some fun. Because….._

_Because I deserve it?_

_I don’t know…._

_There are a lot of things I don’t deserve._

_Or at least…that’s what I grew up believing._

_But…I won’t argue._

_I’ll take what you give me._

“Aseles!” A massive wave of heat clouded Aseles’ head, but her body shivered from the twister of cold wind that entered the hut she slept in. Her eyes squinted from the sting of sand entering, and quickly rubbed her eyes with a defying groan. The sight of the bright navy sky made her grimace; it must be four of five in the morning.

“Wha?” Aseles felt the swift clutch of panic grapple at her chest, but sighed heavily when she saw it was Nakoma who had awoken her. “What is it? Why did you-“ she yawned “-wake me up so early?”

“Kocuom! He’s dead!” the woman’s hands trembled onto her quivering lips, her eyelashes hunched and glistening of the tears that had rained along her cheeks. Aseles eyes shot open; not the news she wanted to wake up to.

She kicked off the covers and stood, helping Nakoma stand and hold her ground, “W-What happened?? How do you know!?”

“Pocahontas…she…” Nakoma fell on her knees in the shadow of the tent, and began to cry more profoundly, “It is my entire fault!” Aseles’ ears picked up the sounds of mourning and footsteps outside, assuming half of the village was now awake. She slipped around Nakoma’s crying figure, and pulled the leather curtain of the hut aside, her eyes refocusing around the dim area. In the center of the shore were the villagers standing in an arc, facing the cupped body in the arms of two soldiers. As Aseles drew closer, her eyes caught sight of Pocahontas standing before her father, the weighty, angry words of a lecture ringing along the waves of the crowd. He glared solidly to Pocahontas who was trying to reason her actions with him.

Powhatan was not having any of it, “You disobeyed me, Pocahontas. And because of _you_ , Kocuom is dead! Bring in the prisoner!” A man of blond hair was literally being dragged by his arms, his shoulders and hair gripped in vicious traps of palms and fingers. Aseles’ eyes widened, seeing it was a blond man, easily six feet if he stood properly. His wrists were tied behind his back, and the clothes were all too familiar to overlook. He must be from one of the men of the beach. Maybe, maybe he knew where Sora, Donald and Goofy were.

“I was only trying to help!” Pocahontas pleaded, her hands cupping the front of her chest, immensely pouring out the emotion bubbling in her throat. Powhatan did not falter his judging stare. Aseles grimaced at how they yanked and pulled the blond sailor into one of the nearby huts, a command to have rope immediately.

“Enough of this nonsense. You are forbidden to leave the village, do I make myself clear??” Pocahontas’ power was entirely diminished, and she let her head hang from the utter humiliation of her father’s demoralizing words. Instead of arguing, Pocahontas shifted her feet to a sulked walk in the opposite direction. She appeared to be heading to the hut Nakoma was left in, and Aseles was all still too stunned to react properly.

“You, warrior!” Aseles jumped at the mention, and took a step back from the approaching Powhatan. She swallowed, quite afraid of what he was going to demand of her. The anger in his eyes was clear enough to frame the ill intentions he might have. “Do you see the threat they pose to the rest of my people?”

“Y-You don’t know what happened,” Aseles exhaled heavily, trying to calm her shaking palms.

Powhatan’s bewildered eyes grappled at her words, “I do not need to know, if I see the consequence! You dare defend them, child?! This means war!”

Aseles rethought about her objective, but nodded firmly the next second, “I understand. Then…let me speak to the prisoner, and figure out a plan to aid you.”

Powhatan appeared pleased of her redirected intentions, unknown of her hidden motive at hand. “Then I shall call my neighboring brothers. We attack at dawn!” The warriors of the village brought out in an loud chanter, Aseles trembling from the sudden, ominous atmosphere that slammed onto the crowd. She looked to the hut where the man was taken, and hurried her way over in quick strides. Without Pocahontas or Nakoma to fill her in properly, she had to count this man to give her the information she wanted about her friends. Maybe, just maybe, she could stop this war before it started..

 

SORA’S POV:

The thudding dirt floor on his shoulder rumbled greatly, causing him to sit up in a sudden chaos of the burning night. The fire torches set the irritable mood of his awakening, and he swiftly stood up to face Donald and Goofy who had been awoken as well.

“What’s going on?” Sora rubbed an eye, yawning.

“We better go check it out,” Donald nodded, cleaning his feathers down of the dirt that collected.

“Wait, where’s John?” Goofy asked, looking around swiftly. Sora followed his gaze, and found that the blond man was indeed gone. Did he sneak out again?

Before any of them could have a theory or a reason, there was a pounding shout outside, “THE SAVAGES! THEY’VE CAPTURED JOHN!” Sora’s eyes widened to his two friends, and they rushed outside, meeting the mob of men circling around the high mound of the campsite. The familiar man with the beret, Thomas, was holding his rifle in a vice grip, and was erratically looking back and forth to the direction of awoken Ratcliffe, then to the exit of the campsite.

“They took John Smith!” Thomas alerted again, gasping desperately for a moment’s rest. But Ratcliffe questioned him further, gripping the edge of his sleeve, disabling him from hunching over.

“Where were they headed?!” Ratcliffe riled. “Out with it, boy!”

“They headed north!” Thomas exclaimed, pointing toward the direction.

“See men?! I told you all explicitly that those savages could not be trusted!” Ratcliffe sneered. “And what did Smith try to do? Befriend them! And look what they did to him!” Sora, Donald and Goofy exchanged a glance, perplexed of the image of a captured Smith. But, is that what John was trying to do? He never explained or confessed where he was going off during the day.

Ratcliffe continued, “I say it is time to take this matter into our own hands, and rescue our comrade! We attack at dawn! WHO IS WITH ME?” Instantly, the whole crowd jeered in approval, and pointed their spears and rifles to the sky.

“Sora, what do we do?” Goofy probed instantly.

Sora gritted his teeth, attempting to grind the situation out of mind, or reshape it into place. If the….savages had taken John, what had become of Aseles? There was still no sign of her. What if…they….

“We need to rescue John.” Sora nodded affirmatively, heading back inside the cabin. Donald and Goofy quickly followed suite, hesitating to put on their jackets when they saw Sora doing it. Nevertheless, they began to dress, with Goofy trying his best to lessen the impact of the situation at hand.

“Sora, what are you thinking about?”

“They have John, and they have Aseles. They do!” Sora whispered determinedly, making Donald shake his head of the sudden rashness.

“You don’t know that!” Donald reasoned.

Sora frowned, his eyebrows furrowed, “How do you know that? We’ve been separated for too long. If she wasn’t with them, she would’ve come here already.” Donald opened his mouth, but no objection came out. The duck merely dropped his arms with a heavy sigh.

“These guys mean business, Sora. What if they want to attack the native people? What if they want us to attack them?”

“Right now, we don’t have a choice. They captured our friends, and we don’t know if they’re with the Heartless or not. Maybe, maybe we can keep ourselves neutral, but we can’t just stay here and do nothing.” Sora tightened his belt, and nodded affirmatively, “C’mon guys.”

Donald and Goofy stood side by side, and nodded carefully to Sora’s command, “Let’s go save our friends.”

 

ASELES’ POV:

With a gentle heave of the leather curtain, Aseles divided the rounded interior with the moonlight. Hunched dejectedly in the shadow, arms and palms bound so viciously that his fingers paled further, was the sailor. Aseles was positive she didn’t see his face from the beach, but her memory was hazed from Vanitas’ interrupting aroma suffocating her thoughts. The elder teen exhaled, and made her way inside. The curtain wavered back with delicate grace, but at the sides of the doorway, she felt a figure stand on either frame; guards no doubt. By the sounds of recruitment outside, Aseles knew she was going to run short of time. She had to do this quickly.

Aseles walked around the depressed man, and stood in front of him. His blond locks fell back when his head tilted to look up to her, his stale eyes withdrawing a flicker of confidence. Aseles swiftly held a finger to her lips, and kneeled before the man so her words could cower into the night, only audible to the man before her.

“Who are you?” the sailor questioned lowly.

Aseles cleared her throat briefly, “My name is Aseles.”

The man’s eyes widened by a fraction, “Aseles? You are their friend. Sora, Donald, and Goofy.”

Aseles tried her best to not urge her tone, “You know them?? They’re safe??”

“Safe? Tch, better than safe. In fact, my men are safe because of them. From what they told me, you chased that larger creature away. Thank you-“

“It’s nothing-don’t worry. They’re at the beach then?”

The man nodded, “Yes. They’re looking for you.”

She sighed in slight relief, but returned to the predicament at hand, “Who are you? What happened?”

“My name is John Smith, and....well...” he scoffed tiredly, blinking slowly. Oh, _OH_ , this was John Smith. The one Pocahontas was seeing.

“What a mess...” Aseles pressed a hand to her face, uttering the words incoherently, but John caught them.

“I have been in worse situations,” he joked dryly.

“Pocahontas’ friend told me someone was killed,” Aseles recalled hurriedly.

John’s mouth dropped to an arc, the memory brooding along his spine, “Yes, unfortunately. A man of the crew, Thomas....” He exhaled, “He was afraid. I was with Pocahontas, and the Indian rushed to us. We held off his attack, and we could have managed it...but...” Aseles didn’t question further when John fell silent. She could only deduce that Nakoma had sent Kocoum after Pocahontas, and the sound of the gunshot alerted the nearby Indians of the village who were patrolling.

“And now you’re here,” Aseles finished.

“Yes. The men at the beach, they do not know any better. They do not understand what the Indians are really like...what Pocahontas is like. I admit, I did not know them either but...”

“Yeah, I get that,” Aseles rubbed the front of her forehead, trying to eliminate the prejudices of Organization XIII out of mind. The way Ansem described them, how Sora, Leon and the others.... “Then, why not try to talk to them?”

“I wanted to, but this happened!” John gritted his teeth, rotating his shoulder slightly to ease the tension of the rope.  Aseles reached with a hand, and fixed the rope to settle better around his wrist. He thanked her with a nod, and continued, “There is no doubt in my mind that Ratcliffe will use this as an attempt to raid the village, and start a slaughter. You must stop him!”

Aseles formulated the burdened task at hand, but nodded firmly despite having no idea who that was, “I will if you tell me where I can find the beach quicker. Sora, Donald and Goofy are still there, right??”

“Yes, they are. You head south, but you need to take the highest hill once you hit the incline of the forest, so you avoid the waterfall,” John informed hurriedly. The sound of approaching footsteps alerted Aseles, and she rapidly stood up. Though, the footsteps passed the hut, making Aseles’ apprehension drop.

“I do not want Pocahontas to get wrapped up into this...” John advised.

“....She means a lot to you, doesn’t she?” Aseles stood up, feeling the center of her chest thumping in quick succession.

John let out a deep breath, his eyes lowering the more he spoke, “I would not have wanted to live for a thousand years if it meant I would have never met her...”

Aseles quirked her mouth, but smiled lightly, “She likes you too.”

John’s eyes lifted, but when they tried to catch Aseles, she was already headed to the exit of the hut, “Wait.”

Aseles paused, and she looked over, “Hmm?”

“You mean a lot to your friends, Aseles. They care deeply about you,” John commented. Aseles felt the burn of her cheeks, and was thankful the night concealed her true feelings. “They have been nothing but restless looking for you.”

“I won’t forget,” Aseles answered genuinely. “Thank you.” John smiled lightly, and resumed his hunched posture, his back heaving from the great pressure of his crime. Aseles frowned at the sight, but knew it was now up to her to clear this entire mess up. She first had to get to Sora, Donald and Goofy-

“Warrior!” Aseles froze midstride, and alerted herself back to stand straight. Powhatan had caught sight of her, and beckoned for her to approach. She did so, with no eager swing in her step. She stood about two yards away, and found herself surrounded by Powhatan and some of the male warriors of the village. They were all painted with vicious, sharp marks of red and orange across their chests and face, angling and cutting into their cheekbones. They all appeared older, and malicious up front.

“What plan do you have to rid us of these savages?” Powhatan prompted.

Aseles felt her spine shudder unpleasantly, but the crease of something red and hot began to inflame the back of her skull, “No.”

Powhatan’s eyes constricted to thin silts, the black of his eyes targeting her, “No? What is the meaning of this?”

Aseles shook her head more clearly now, her hands in fists, “No. I will not help you start this war.” The warriors beside Powhatan suddenly clenched their spears in hand, but Aseles forced herself to hold off her offensive nature; she had to show she was no threat to them.

“You dare to defy what is right? What we must do?!”

“This isn’t right!” Aseles stretched her arms out, sole pressed, sunk into the floor to balance her ricocheting thoughts. “Your violence will not solve anything! If only you would just listen-“

“What lies has the prisoner spewed on you!?” Powhatan shouted this time, now catching the attention of several villagers. Among them Aseles caught sight of Pocahontas and Nakoma, concealed behind the curtain of the hut. Aseles looked to them, but she did not need to give a signal for them to understand what she was saying. Pocahontas knew it, by the way she clutched the curtain, and her eyes widened to the words Aseles tried to reason with her father.

“No, not lies!” Aseles defended, standing her ground. “If only you knew what they felt like. If you had just talked to them, this wouldn’t be happening!”

“Nonsense, child!” Powhatan cried out, and the warriors were now holding their spears up, aiming them to Aseles. “They destroy our land, attack and kill our people, and you believe they are in the right; you are gravely mistaken! You are a traitor to this village; you do not wish to keep us safe, you were merely using us for your own gain!”

“Think what you want, I don’t care!” Aseles shouted back, taking a step back. “But I’m going to make this right! I’m going to stop this!”

“Leave this village, and never come back,” Powhatan growled lowly, but Aseles did not need to be told twice; her feet were already racing her toward the forest, the cries and roaring bonfire flickering into the silence of the night. The only sound now audible were the cracking and breakage of twigs and branches, the running river aided her to the direction John had advised her about.

_Is this really necessary?_

 

The low branches kicked and swatted at Aseles’ legs, her keyblade cutting down the brushwood and bushes that created obstacles in her run. The howls of wolves and hoots of owls increased the further she sprinted, her pants heavy but controlled through her nostrils. She felt the great flood of stings and pricks along her arms and thighs, hot flashes of heat attempting to halt her run.

_But I suppose...this is just in your nature._

 

An open lagoon crashed underneath her boots, the magical leather able to deflect and glide the water from overflowing her feet. A weeping willow tree in the distance flourished overhead, the leaves almost opening on their own to let her through. As if the willow tree knew her purpose, as if it were alive.

_Keep going. You’re almost there._

 

The cry of yells echoed in the near distance, at least within half a mile. She cut her direction, suspecting she was already halfway of her trail, but the sounds were...headed towards her? No, they were already making their move. The sunrise...it was approaching soon.

“Come on!” Aseles urged herself, the toll of her pace diminishing with each passing tree. Her eyes squinted to stay focused, and her stomach churned, threatening to pour out her lungs.

“Sora! Donald....Goofy!” Aseles gasped out, arms swinging to propel her forward, to prevent her from stopping. She could have sworn she heard a reply somewhere, but she couldn’t point out where it was coming from.

“Sora! Donald! Goofy!” Her legs finally gave, and she leaned against the bark of a tree, nails digging and clutching for air. Her eyes shut closed, but shot open at the sound of marching feet, and those odd footsteps that had broken from the group. They were headed to her.

“Aseles!”

Her mouth shot open, and a hoarse cry rung out, “Over! Here!” The oncoming cling of arms was too fast for her to capture properly, but the sight of brown hair, an olive nose, and a white feathered arm convinced her she was being tackled by three dorks.

“Aseles!” Goofy’s voice chimed magnificently in her ears, and she hugged back with trembling arms. The hug was departed too soon, yet Aseles knew an important matter was at hand. She tried to say something, though the grasp of two hands pulled her shoulders around and made her look deeply into the sky blue eyes awoke yet dulled her senses without warning.

“Aseles!” Sora sighed out in absolute relief, hugging her tightly once more. She coughed from how his shoulder pressed into her neck; she was afraid to admit she missed his scent of the beach and sand. They parted, with a gloved hand now patting her back to help her relieve her lungs. She hit her chest, and was met with an additional smack against her hip.

“Ow!” Aseles hissed, looking to see Donald’s usual, ticked-off face wagging his wand to her direction.

“Where have you been!?” he quipped with deep rigidity.

“H-Hold on-“ Aseles coughed once more. However, she was suddenly tucked back behind someone, and she had to blink several times regain her surroundings. Wait, did she just hear the sound of someone picking up a rifle?

“No, this is our friend! The one we’ve been looking for!” Sora defended, his arms spread out like an eagle. Aseles looked over Goofy’s shoulder, her back straight again to see an army of men stand before them, with a wide ringleader in the front. The man did not lower his rifle however, the men from the beach quickly cutting in.

“It is her, sir!”

“She was with them alright!”

“She was the one who chased the beast away, Ratcliffe!”

Aseles directed her attention to the metal-chested frontrunner, a color of lavender underneath his given, dark armor. With a scoff, he lowered his rifle, and sneered in the group’s direction.

“How can you be so sure? Her skin is almost the color of the savages, those Indians,” the man abruptly pointed out. Sora’s mouth clenched tightly, while Aseles’ dropped of the sudden accusation.

“What did you say?” Sora resisted the urge to yell, but the protective side of him took control, and stood defiantly against the man.

“Don’t talk about our friend like that!” Donald argued next. The man merely chuckled off his statement, but it did not lessen the blow Aseles was fighting in the pit of her stomach.

“Alas, now that she’s here, we can surely count on her to fend the wounded once this battle is over-“

“You’re not going anywhere!” Aseles pushed past her friends, and immediately snapped out her keyblade in hand. The red raging in her eyes was all too noticeable that several of the men with rifles tensed, while the center man only stared unimpressed to her direction.

“Aseles-“ Goofy started, but nor Sora or Donald tried to stop her.

“Come now, it is all but a simple mist-“

“You’re not attacking the Indians!” Aseles shouted, “It’s evil people like you that make the world ugly. Your accusations and your talk, the way you treat the land and it’s people to get what you want-“

Ratcliffe turned red like a bruised hornet, and shook his rifle to her direction, “Listen here, woman-!”

“John Smith told me everything you’re up to!” Aseles retaliated angrier tenfold, “You sent that man with the gun to kill the Indian to cause all this! You did it on purpose!” The shocked faces behind Ratcliffe began to murmur, though one man in particular drooped his head, his hands tightening on his weapon in hand. “You started this war, and I’m going to make sure a racist bastard like you isn’t going to finish it!!”

“See here!!!” Ratcliffe’s mouth quivered in distraught rage, the edges of his mouth now foaming.

“You want to go through her, you have to go through us too!!” Sora swung his keyblade in full swing, pointing it just the same with Aseles and now Donald. Goofy stood at the ready with shield in hand, all four standing to prevent passage in the open area. The men behind Ratcliffe exchanged glances, uncertain of why their leader had gone so still. Yet, the soft chuckle emitting from his thin lips erupted into a great splendor of laughter. Aseles felt her muscles tense, trying to make sense of his sudden change of handling the situation.

“He was right about you,” Ratcliffe suddenly announced. Aseles’ feet plummeted to lead, but her determination did not waver. “Now, stand aside if you wish to keep your heads.”

“No deal!” the four pronounced in unison. The sky suddenly lit in a quick flash of light, an icy atmosphere coating the lower ferns and branches. Aseles’ eyes sharpened to the changed area, and behind Ratcliffe, his men abruptly began to cough and shout.

“I don’t like this...” Donald grimaced, putting his friends on edge. The sailors stood up in perfect, straight formation, their eyes now clouded with a mist of purple with their bodies outlined in red. Ratcliffe darkly chuckled, his eyes shadowed into the creases of his skull.

“Vanitas, I leave this to you.”

“My pleasure.” The group of heroes was airborne, and hit the ground in a zigzagged pattern. The open area was now secured in an invisible force field, Ratcliffe leading his possessed men safely around the shield. Sora sent his sparking keyblade across the air, but before it could even touch the barrier, a dark glowing hand gripped it. The digits were inflamed in red, but the flames could not compare to the crimson eyes boring into Aseles.

“That’s not very nice,” Vanitas cooed. The keyblade in his hand flashed away, Sora regaining ownership of it once more. The group quickly stood side by side, weapons drawn to the menacing threat.

“Move aside!” Sora shouted angrily, but the action only amused Vanitas further, a sinister grin etched and spreading across his pale face.

“If I remember correctly,” Vanitas waved his fingers in front of him, his own keyblade now in his grip, “This did not end well for any of you.”

“We’re not scared of you!” Goofy retaliated, gloved hands wrinkled in their constricting holds.

Vanitas’ grin anchored to a firm line, the shadows of his eyes darkening, “You soon will be.”

“Split up!” Sora’s voice drowned from the massive bolts raining from the ceiling, as if the clouds themselves aided in Vanitas’ deeds. The air was stricken with pebbles and dirt, Aseles considering her steps to not crash against the barrier now. She skidded to a halt, and her keyblade spun over her head like a windmill to deflect the oncoming bolts.

“Fire!” Donald cried out, a blaze of flames dancing around him and Sora. The red-orange glow lit their eyes and cheeks, and distinguished Vanitas’ dark frame from the shadows of the morning. His offensive keyblade struck down viciously, Sora protecting Donald successfully from each blow.

“Goofy!” Donald commanded out, and almost instantly a rocketing shield sliced through the air, aiming straight for Vanitas’ back. However, Vanitas’ body suddenly evaporated, having Sora to dodge Goofy’s oncoming shield. Aseles felt the mist around her cheeks shift, and she instinctively swung back, clanging keyblade against Vanitas’. The sparks raged in full force, and Vanitas’ body pushed to skid her feet easily across the floor like slicked glass.

“Foolish girl,” Vanitas hissed out. Aseles gritted her teeth, slamming her keyblade downwards and back up to push Vanitas away. It was brief, but it was enough for Sora to send his spiraling keyblades against Vanitas. Vanitas blocked one, but was caught by the second, granting an angry gruff from the dark-haired male. Sora slammed all his efforts with each strike, his yellow-blue mixed form granting him instant maneuvering and swiftly-delivered strikes. Aseles and Donald cut close behind him, and Sora quickly ducked his upper body down to allow the spark of illuminated branches engulf around Vanitas’ chest. The male twitched and staggered on his feet, but Goofy thought nothing of sympathy; his shield slammed right against Vanitas’ abdomen. His back met the body of a tree, and his keyblade stabbed to the ground to regain composure.

“You little brats,” Vanitas coughed out, running the top of his wrist against his slacked jaw. “You don’t know when to quit, do you?”

“Could say the same to you,” Sora countered sternly, making Vanitas snort.

“Look at the keyblade wielder, talking all high and mighty now,” Vanitas rebutted with a weak smirk, “You think you have what it takes, Sora? To take on someone like me?”

Sora’s eyes narrowed steadily, but his confident stance did not waver of Vanitas’ manipulating words, “I know I can. You may have escaped from inside me, but that doesn’t mean I will let you hurt my friends. Not while I’m around.”

“Funny, looks like you’ve been doing a poor job since then,” Vanitas’ eyes shifted suddenly to Aseles, and she tried her best to not look bothered by the way he was grinning. “Think this is all going to play in your favor? Think again. You may have your friends, but they will be your undoing in the end.”

“At least I _have_ friends,” Sora retorted clearly. Vanitas’ entire demeanor dropped, and it was replaced with an angry growl. He solely focused onto Sora now, the brimming coat of red in his eyes illuminating. As if he were facing a memory he wished he had forgotten.

“I’m going to make you pay, _Ventus_ ,” Vanitas snarled in a deep octave. Sora’s eyes stayed firmly solid, but widened to view Vanitas’ form suddenly dispersing into broken fog. In the matter of a second, his entire body evaporated, and the shield that surrounded them shattered into pixelated glass. No one moved, however, only until a few seconds later when they came to a silent agreement that the coast was clear.

“Everyone alright?” Sora asked. His clothes reverted back to normal, his free left-hand swiftly gripping to Aseles’s shoulder. She nodded only after he shook it, trying to budge away the bothering thud at the bottom of her chest.

“We need to go help John!” Goofy quickly intervened.

“Oh right!” Sora remembered, and faced the certain direction, “Come on, guys!”

The run back was short for Aseles, and she felt more at ease now that she was reunited with her group. She was glad she was, but….deep down….she was bothered of how easily things settled with Vanitas. Why did he give up so easily? Not that his attacks were anything forgiving or lax, but he didn’t even bother to stick around for that long. Aseles wasn’t sure what he was up to; she knew it wasn’t going to be anything good.

“Oh no!” Goofy gasped when they finally reached the edge of the forest. They group faced the open plain, a rocky ridge towering over the view of the land. At the bottom of it were the two groups of Indians and sailors huddled together. At the side, Aseles spotted the man named Ratcliffe, tied with some rope and his rifle tossed at his feet.

“It’s nothing but a trick! The gold!! The land! It’s mine, it’s mine!” Ratcliffe shouted angrily. He was immediately silenced, several of his followers gagging him with a rag.

“Once Vanitas left, I think his control on them disappeared,” Sora explained while leading the way over. The group of bodies turned to look at the approaching heroes, and parted to let them approach the standing Powhatan, and the kneeled Pocahontas. In her arms laid John Smith who clutched his side, hands inked in red from a fresh, gunshot wound.

“John!” Sora hurried over, Donald, Goofy and Aseles right behind. The brunette laid beside John’s free side, quickly taking out the potions in his hand.

“Heh, the cavalry has arrived,” John joked, making Donald sigh of his good-natured disposition.

“He is hurt,” Pocahontas frowned greatly, cradling his neck in her possession.

“This? This is nothing. I have dealt with…worse,” John gasped out softly, his eyes flickering. A man with a beret hat approached, bowing to Pocahontas and Powhatan before addressing his concern. “Yes, Thomas?”

“If you stay long, the wound will get worse, John,” the young sailor advised.

“Wait, here. Drink this,” Sora cut in, and handed an opened elixir to John.

The blond cocked an eyebrow up, looking incredulously at the bottle, “More of your magic?”

“It’ll help you a lot,” Aseles encouraged, drawing all eyes to her now. John hummed in thought, but took the bottle with Pocahontas’ help. He drank slowly, but the taste must’ve been a bit bitter by the way he almost coughed on the first gulp. Still, he kept his hold on the drink, and drank the entire mixture. His entire outline glowed softly within the dawn’s light. He coughed once, but his breathing filled from its shallow volume. He sat up easily, and he lifted his shirt to inspect the injury to find it entirely gone.

“Wow….that is some………”

“Good magic?” Goofy humored him, making John laugh a bit while the rest of his men whispered urgently of his sudden recovery. Pocahontas helped him up, John giving her a soft thanks. Powhatan suddenly took a step forward, drawing all focus to him.

“Thank you, for saving me, young man,” Powhatan’s grip on his staff lessened, and his eyes no longer held the anger Aseles last saw them haunted with. “I owe you my deep gratitude, and respect. My daughter…she tried to reason with me, but I was filled with anger, and rage unlike any beast I have ever faced. Also…” His dark eyes loomed over the group, and they landed onto Aseles who gulped gently. Powhatan walked over to stand in front of her, “Forgive me, sister.”

“No no, please. It’s okay…” Aseles cleared her throat, trying to not blush from the response, “You were worried about your people.”

“Your friends,” Powhatan’s eyes lingered to Sora, Donald and Goofy who waved and beamed back, “Are _truly_ fortunate to have a friend like you.”

“Yeah we are!” Goofy suddenly chimed in, wrapping his arm around Aseles.

“No, don’t!” Aseles objected, but her face was now blaring red from Sora and Donald joining the embrace. This earned a chuckle from John and Pocahontas.

“Thank you, for keeping her safe,” Sora nodded sincerely to Powhatan and Pocahontas.

“It was our pleasure. And thank you for keeping our people- our family- safe,” Pocahontas strode forward, and her hand laced with Sora’s. “You are welcome any time in our village. We are now friends, yes?”

“Haha, definitely!” Sora grinned, giving her hand a squeeze. “We-“ The flashing light of a keyblade shuddered into Sora’s free hand, making him furrow his eyebrows.

“You carry one as well,” Powhatan made notice.

“Oh jeez,” Sora’s face scrunched to worry, making his friends look to him in question.

“Sora, what is it?” John asked.

“We-we have to go, but we’ll come back when we can,” Sora nodded eagerly to Powhatan, John and Pocahontas.

“Of course, your responsibilities are needed elsewhere,” Powhatan bowed his head, along with the warrior men that stood behind him. “We hope you have a safe trip, brothers and sister.”

“Thank you,” the four bowed their heads.

John walked ahead to clasp his hand around Sora’s shoulder, “See you around.”

“Stay out of trouble, John,” Donald wagged his finger, earning him a chuckle.

“I will make sure of it,” Pocahontas smiled softly, interlacing her hands with John’s. Her bold, vibrant eyes gleamed of the yellow, awakening sun, and almost seemed to bless the group of a wondrous hope. “Take care, friends. We hope to see you soon.”

 

RIKU’S POV:

Today was going particularly smooth, and he honestly did his best to not ruin it for himself. With a streak like his, he was silently baffled how well his rounds went this morning. At noon he found himself sitting before the round table, a closed notepad at his left with a closed pen tucked between his forefinger and thumb. The writing utensil clattered mutedly back and forth in his loose grip, the juddering movement catching Leon’s attention.

He took Leon’s chore to gather some supplies from Traverse Town; seeing that Axel was busy enough with Tifa and Cloud to extract the components of the fake keyblade. Riku thought (and questioned himself repeatedly before giving in) to ask Kairi if she wanted to come along. He knew he severed her confidence on wanting to go to other worlds (hence her silent nod when she accepted he was being genuine in his request), and felt….guilty about it now. He knew he acted appropriately when she got back from Agrabah, but to have her constantly refusing to go with him anywhere? He was crushed by her sudden, drastic change to him, yet he didn’t blame her; it was Sora or him to be the brotherly figure, but he wondered if Sora saw himself that way too…

Buckled in, the first third of the ride was quiet, but Riku did not probe her or force themselves to have a conversation. He occasionally looked to her, his icy orbs catching her feet swinging over the ground and her fingers fiddling on her lap.

Riku sighed heavily in thought, then replied, “When we’re done, we can go check up on Destiny Islands. If you’re up for it, that is.”

Kairi looked over, giving a nervous smile, “That would be great, actually…”

“Mhmm. Check in on the old folks would be good too.”

“I bet your dad is going to lecture you again,” Kairi hummed after.

Riku rolled his eyes, his elbows relaxed and bent a bit more in shape, “Yeah, I can already hear it.” This gained a laugh from Kairi, making him feel accomplished of his effort to get her talking. “I’m sure your mom, and _my_ mom miss you,” Riku continued.

“Hmm…she does. She misses Sora too…” Kairi’s words drained from any vivacious tone she started with. Riku looked over, catching Kairi’s smile wavering, her fingers back to fiddling again.

He tried his best, “Knowing the goofball he is, yeah. He thinks he can get away with things just because your mom and his are best friends…”

 “Do you think…the others are okay?” she asked softly. Riku averted his eyes momentarily, but looked ahead once more to the resting galaxy before him. His fingers gripped around the rim of the gummi ship’s wheel, perspiration swimming beneath his skin. 

“I’m sure they’re fine..” Riku drew out carefully. Kairi hummed lightly in response, and just stayed quiet for the rest of the ride. Riku was glad it was only ten minutes from there.

The night was warm and quaint with a few pedestrians about, a Moogle occasionally shimming up the flight of stairs to reach the back of the Accessory Shop. Inside the shop, Riku took out the list Cid had hastily and loosely scribbled on while Kairi waited by the fireplace. Riku let out a sharp breath, looking to see Kairi looking at the crackling flames, her chin resting in her upright hand. Her mouth was slanted, not the smile Riku was hoping for.

“How can I help you?” the clerk asked while wiping his hands on a towel.

“Oh, here I-….crap,” Riku grumbled, seeing the hastily scrawled smears of a deranged madman.

“Well boy, you’re going to have to help me decode this,” the clerk chuckled, Riku resisting the urge to slap his hand to his face; Cid was never a patient man to write clearly for _anything_. It took them about fifteen minutes to make sense of the jumbled letters, all the needed supplies in an arm-sized box and a paper bag for the smaller parts.

“All of this?” Kairi peered alongside him, having been bored long enough and getting up to see what Riku was buying.

“It’s all for Cid. Who knows what he’s doing with the computers,” Riku wrapped his arms around the weight of the box after handing the munny over.

“You kids have a good night,” the clerk waved them off, with Kairi giving him their thanks. In her hand she gripped the paper bag with the several pieces of metal and bolts, and aided Riku with the door so he could go through.

“Hey, want to stop by to eat something?” Kairi paced beside Riku down the steps, and poked his arm. He looked, and saw her pointing to the small café to the right. Riku was about to object, but Kairi’s glimmering eyes told him to answer otherwise. He slowed his pace, and sighed with a quirk of his mouth.

Kairi wavered in her posture, waving her hand off in front of her, “Nevermind. I understand we’re busy-“

“No, it’s fine. We can eat,” Riku smiled lightly, nodding his head over. “I have enough munny from-“ The sudden sound of dropped metal made Riku’s hair stand on end, the clanking making him wince from how loud and close it was. His eyes shot to Kairi, who was the one that ended up dropping her own bag of Cid’s metal parts.

“What’s wrong? Why did you-“ he paused, and his arm began to level the box in his arm toward the ground, resting it there with a small thud. He saw Kairi’s glistening eyes looking over behind them, seeing a girl a few yards away approach them.

Her skin was fair with straight blue hair reaching the middle of her back. Her eyes shined a soft violet, with some freckles settled around the top of her nose and inner cheeks. Her nature held something hesitant, by the way she tucked her free arm within her chest. She wore a long-sleeved, collared shirt with a damp vest over it, the shirt tucked in a school skirt that reached somewhere around mid-thigh. She looked soaked from the way her stripped leggings rolled over her black shoes sloppily. The edges of her eyes were cracked surfaces of water, her pink eyes hinting she had been crying for some time.

“I was wondering…if you could help me, please,” the girl shuddered visibly, swallowing with difficulty.

“What’s your name?” Riku asked sternly, holding his ground with a stunned Kairi beside him.

“My name is Raine….I-I’m lost. I don’t know where to go.” In her opposite hand…she held a keyblade.

 

ASELES’ POV:

“Look who came back,” Cid’s voice introduced itself into the room. Always the warm greeting, Aseles saw.

Merlin’s Study was more cluttered than before; perhaps it was the new stack of books piled so highly that one more was needed to touch the ceiling on each column. They were pushed to the corner of the room, and took up some space of the chairs that were set around. A small table had been set at the center, but it resembled much like Merlin’s old, occasional stand. It was draped with a velvet cloth, with pottery and china resting on top of it. The steam of the poured cups rose like dancing fabrics of silk, and sitting around the table were Cid, Aerith and Merlin.

“Merlin! When did you get here?” Sora asked.

“Hiya, Merlin!” Goofy waved, beaming to the old wizard.

“Oh lads and lady! You arrived, just as I suspected you would!” Merlin smiled with a sip of his tea and a curling of his winter mustache.

“Are you the one who called us?” Donald opened an arm to him.

Merlin blinked twice, rimming a hand around the body of his china cup, “Well, I uh- I’m afraid not boys- and lady. Why ask such a question?”

“Oh, well…the keyblade. It appeared in my hand, and started to shake,” Sora scratched the back of his head, “It’s never done that before, so we thought someone was in trouble.”

“Your keyblade might know something you don’t,” Aerith rested her hands neatly on her lap, giving the group a tilt of her head accompanied with a sincere smile. “Stick around in the meantime. We missed you.”

“Heh, thanks, Aeirth. Where are Riku and Kairi?” Sora asked after a look around.

“The boy dragged Kairi to fetch me some parts for the computer,” Cid announced, the twig in his mouth jumping to prevent itself from falling out.

“With that insensible penmanship you carry, they’ll be stuck at the Accessory Shop for the next year,” Merlin sipped his cup casually, ignoring Cid’s glare.

“They should be back soon, they left around noon,” Aerith giggled, tucking a loose lock behind her ear. “Would you like something to eat, or drink?”

“Now that you mention it-“ the entire interior of the room flinched at the swing of the door opening. Aseles’ pose relaxed to see the familiar redhead, though his unusual storm inside and his chest heaving proved something else. It wasn’t the run, Aseles knew for sure.

“Axel?” Aerith stood.

“What’s the rush?” Sora followed next.

“….Oh great, of course.” Axel oddly addressed them, his gloved hand rubbing along the edges of his temples. “You came at…..I don’t know if I should say right or bad time.”

“What do you mean?” Aseles was not enjoying this pensive feeling.

“You need to come to the lab. _Now_.” Axel emphasized, a fragmented scowl on display.

Merlin stood up properly, reaching inside his long sleeved robe, “Now now, no need to fret. Here!” His wand formed into view, and motioned everyone to huddle. Aseles made sure to not press herself against anyone, but her eyes glued to Axel standing beside her. His hand gripped her elbow, confusing her of his manner.

“What is it, Axel?” Aseles whispered. Axel said nothing, worsening her anxiety that much further. A sudden wind stormed and warped the group off the ground, Aseles familiar of the feeling. She grounded her feet to prevent herself from tripping, so sure that Axel used her to level himself steady once they teleported. Sora, Donald and Goofy gripped onto one another while Aerith and Cid clung onto each other’s arms, yet Cid was the one muttering incoherently under his breath.

“Thank you, Axel,” Leon’s firm tone took hold of Aseles’ running thoughts, and she looked over to see he was accompanied by everyone from the Hollow Bastion Committee. In the center of the USS room was Riku and Kairi, but….what caught Aseles completely off-guard was the third figure, one she had never laid eyes on before. Her blue hair was immediately distinctive, the purple eyes almost piercing in color. No, Aseles had never seen her before, especially in some sort of school uniform?

“Uh…..hi,” Sora raised an awkward hand up, blinking to the odd presence the group held. “What’s…going on?”

“By the way you’re confused, I’m guessing you’ve never met this girl before,” Leon stated rather than questioned. The group of four looked to the teen, and shook their heads.

“Should we?” Donald walked a bit forward, the huddled group now expanded to surround Riku, Kairi and the teen.

“Oh,” Kairi placed a hand on the unnamed person’s shoulder, turning her to Sora and his group, “Her name is Raine. Raine, this is Sora, Donald, Goofy and Aseles. Merlin, Aeirth and Cid. You already met Axel.” The teen nodded her head only slightly, but Aseles couldn’t tell from how hunched her head was. It was as if she were afraid to look at anyone.

“Uh, hi! Raine,” Sora addressed, and he held out his hand to her. Raine’s eyes shifted to it, but she didn’t lift a hand to greet it. Sora politely let his hand drop, like a curtain rather than dead weight.

“Where are you from?” Goofy went next.

“Uh...I really...don’t remember,” she replied. Aseles could have mistaken it easily for a whisper.

“You…don’t remember?” Sora blinked in thought. Raine gripped her head abruptly, her fingers clinging to the dry strands near her ears. Leon quickly intervened, placing his hand onto Sora’s shoulder.

“She doesn’t talk much,” Leon defended.

“The most we got was her name and…” Kairi ran her hand along Raine’s back, who didn’t seem to mind the kind gesture.

“And?” Sora pressured.

“This.” Riku turned his body full frontal, and it wasn’t until he lifted his arm that Aseles saw what she hardly wanted to see today: a keyblade.

It differed entirely of what Aseles had seen; having a long, straight neck that was intertwined by lavender vines, connecting to the top. The head of the keyblade was longer than the ordinary head of the Kingdom Key, with five diamonds connected to the orb at the center. The handle was circled downward to enclose around the hand like a protective shield.

“…A..keyblade? _A_ keyblade?” Donald interrogated.

Riku nodded once, his eyes averting to sapphire-haired teen before recollecting to the group, “It’s not a coincidence she came up to us.”

“How do you know that for sure?” Sora raised a brow, crossing his arms tightly on his chest.

“ _Because_ , Sora, what are the chances that someone with a true keyblade happens to be in Traverse Town coincidentally when we’re having an issue of keyblade wielders on our hands?”

“That doesn’t mean you have to blow it up in her face when she’s right here,” Aseles defended, gaining Riku’s doubtful expression next.

An intangible vigor withered and crackled between the two, Aseles acquainted of how defensive Riku had suddenly gotten. It wasn’t new, unfortunately; the tension between the two was far from settled, considering that they just barely saw one another after a couple of days. She knew Riku was keeping skeletons in his closet, but how many skeletons, she wasn’t sure. A matter of wanting to find out was something else entirely. 

“Riku, take it easy,” Sora gripped onto Riku’s shoulder to dissuade the tension.

Riku completely ignored him, his eyes keyed onto Aseles’ with a firm glare, “For her to appear isn’t up to chance.”

“What if it is?” Aseles swiftly interjected, unnoticing she took several steps in his direction. “She’s probably missing a family, and you’re here being Mister Detective with evidence you don’t have.”

“It is essential to know where the girl comes from,” Merlin stepped forward. Everyone’s attention turned to him, Aseles and Riku taking a step back to let the wizard take the stage, “Though, it is also important to sympathize with what is lost....” Subtly Raine’s head drooped, her hair curtaining the sides of her face from view.

Riku exhaled, rubbing his head with a hand, “…You’re right. I’m sorry-“ The droplets of landing tears slightly stunned Aseles, and clearly she wasn’t the only one taken aback of Raine’s shuddering form.

“Oh…” Sora’s face drained of any joyful disposition, unsure if he should help Kairi who was soothing Raine’s back. Something about this familiar picture struck in nerve in Aseles, and she shifted uncomfortably on how silent yet profound Raine’s tears were. She refused to let herself cry fully, and her fists trembled from the pain of her nails sinking into her flesh. Aseles felt….really bad, awful….bothered and disturbed. And no one was…bothering to console her fully…

The feeling of alienation, separation…a full void. It would never be recovered...The keyblade...it was a light to all worlds...but destruction to the person who held it...No, it was this all over again.

“Hey…” Aseles paced forward, Leon and Axel attentive on watching her. Raine lifted her head up gradually, enough to catch Aseles peering at her through the crevices of her bangs. Aseles reached forward, her digits sliding around Raine’s arm, and holding their lock at the back of her shoulder. She didn’t notice Kairi let Raine go, or how Riku was sternly looking to her. Nor did she pay mind to the small smile on Sora, Donald and Goofy’s faces, or how Axel tilted his head curiously, with the edge of his mouth quirking upwards.

Raine’s eyes fully gazed into her, and for a change, Aseles felt in control, empowered of her emotions rather than disabled by them. The lift in Raine’s eyes overpowered all doubt Aseles had, and…..

Aseles felt the watery tension along the edges of her eyes, the tips of her fingertips quaking until they pressed onto Raine’s shirt, “You’re not alone. It m-may seem like it, everything is confusing and overbearing, but k-know- you may not know us, that’s okay! We’re not your family, or your old friends, but we’re here for you-“ Aseles’ grip to cling onto Raine’s sudden weight was both instinct and sentiment, and she didn’t mind to feel Raine’s fingers dig into her. If Raine needed a support to hold onto, Aseles was going to try her very best.

“Thank you,” Raine choked out from her heaving chest. One tight embrace was all it took for her to be whole, even if it was for one second. Aseles understood her.

Aseles knew the feeling all too well.


	16. Darkness

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> As part of the LGBTQIA community, I need to talk about what occured on June 12, 2016. We heard the story but the same could not be said for those fueled with hate toward Muslims and the religion of Islam. I’m a Mexican-American, who lives in the United States, and I’m dating the woman of my dreams. I’m terrified of being shot because I’m dating someone of the same sex. 
> 
> If you’re feeling this way, or inferior to those who call you a waste, a mistake, a sinner, I want you to know that those people are all liars who don’t understand what the word LOVE means. I want you to know that you are not alone. Know that I may not know you or ever meet you, but I love you so much. You are worth every moment. I don’t care if you’re gay, straight, male or female, religious or not, liberal or conservative. You are not alone.
> 
> I’m terrified, but I won’t let that stop me, and I don’t want it to stop you. Don’t let the fear hold you prisoner because that’s not living life. You’re better than that. We earn love, by loving ourselves, loving one another, yourself, a family, friends, work, hobbies, pets, home, and dreams. Don’t let fear stop you. Don’t let fear win. Love. Love Always Wins.
> 
> Sincerely,
> 
> -Les

The silent buzz of the fridge occupied the kitchen; Aseles tried not to mind it, but it was difficult with the quietness at the dining table already. Granted, it was still early, and only her and Raine were awake. Riku had left moments prior, but from the abrupt footsteps when the door closed, Aseles assumed Raine was waiting for Riku to leave so she could come downstairs. She wasn’t expecting Aseles to be there, given that Aseles and Riku only have a greeting and farewell with a nod or a glance.

Paying no mind to Riku’s guarded demeanor, Aseles looked to Raine. Though, the girl was again averting her eyes around, dodgy and calculating. Her hands were in between her legs, leaving her cereal untouched for quite some time. She munched gradually, and every time her spoon rattled to meet the lessening bowl of food, Aseles found herself looking over to inspect her.

Her hair was fixed this time, and a closer look revealed that the color was a mix between blue and dark navy, fusing into a form of violet. She was at least two to three years younger than Aseles, but it couldn’t be certain from her hunched stature. She was indeed shorter, as tall as Goofy maybe. Her ears were pierced with soft gems formed into stars, her legs bare from the long socks she had. Aerith must have put her clothes to wash, Raine only wearing her skirt and a collared shirt that was different than the one last night. She didn’t say much, but Aseles had no intentions of making her feel uncomfortable when she was given a room in the house. Aseles looked to her own hastily made breakfast, wondering if she was even going to finish her scrambled eggs.

“Is this...your home?” Aseles stilled. She looked up to see Raine give a brief glance, unable to hold it for more than two seconds. Her eyes gazed back to her bowl of cereal, her hand picking up the spoon again.

“I guess it is. Not my home... _home_ if that makes sense,” Aseles replied. Her fork divided her eggs in half, no intention of eating it after all. Just to make noise to settle her nerves.

“Oh...” Raine whispered out.

Aseles cleared her throat, placing her fork down, “Raine....can I ask you...something?” The girl locked her shoulders at this, but nodded to her surprise. “How long were you in Traverse Town?”

“I’m not sure...” Raine took a moment to answer, a frown following, “I think a week....or two.”

“Right...” Aseles quirked her mouth, lightly tapping the tips of her fork against the ceramic plate. “I don’t mean to interrogate you.” Raine nodded in understanding, and pushed her chair back to stand up. She turned with Aseles pushing a hand to her own face, unsure of what to say. Suddenly, the sound of a crashing plate rung out, making Aseles jump in her seat. She turned to see the cracked remains of the bowl Raine had tried to put in the sink. The blue-haired teen slapped her hands to her face, her knees quaking and back shuddering in mortification. Aseles quickly stood, and wrapped an arm around her shoulders.

“Hey, relax. Nothing happened,” the brunette reassured.

Raine shook her head, “I-I’m sorry...it’s just that...”

“It’s fine...it’s just a plate,” Aseles noted, and kneeled to pick up the broken pieces. Raine awkwardly shifted to the side, but bent down as well, her shaking hands gathering up whatever was near her. Aseles reached, her fingers interlocking around Raine’s wrist to keep her steady. Raine’s weary eyes glanced over, for once staying in contact.

“It’s fine...it’s going to be fine,” Aseles replied carefully. “You’re going to be fine.” Raine took a moment to process her statement. They both stood up, tossing the pieces in the trash. Aseles herself lost her appetite, and grabbed her plate to wash it. In the process, she looked to see Raine stayed alongside the trashcan, her eyes glancing along the countertop. Aseles thought for a moment...

“A-Aseles?” Raine began warily.

“Hmm?”

“What do you mean...meant when you said this wasn’t your...home?” With a towel, Aseles dried her hands, and set the fabric on a rack to dry.

She looked to the door, “Follow me.” Raine faltered but tailed in tow. Outside, the two entered the cool morning, the gleams of yellow and orange blossoming along the rooftops of tiles and clay. The brunette signaled with a hand, smiling to Raine who was temporarily mesmerized by the sight.

“Where are we going?” Raine asked. Aseles stuffed her hands in her pockets, the soft thuds of her boots echoing lightly with Raine’s shoes.

“To the Bailey, so we can talk there.”

“Oh, okay.” They arrived soon after, Aseles not minding for Raine to gather the view of the Borough once they made the top stairs. Inside the shadowed structure, Aseles paused her tread, and leaned her arms against the balustrade of stone. The wind blew swiftly before gracing and twirling into a kissing breeze. Her bangs swayed easily, her cool eyes catching Raine nearing.

“Oh....” The field of flowers and greenery prompted Raine a new sight, her fingertips lightly pressing against the stone wall before resting her palms fully for support.

“It’s pretty, right?” Aseles amused her, smiling softly.

“Yes...” Raine commented next. “Hmmm....”

Aseles rubbed her nose, “Radiant Garden is my home, but the house we’re sleeping in isn’t where I first lived.”

“...What do you mean?” Raine withdrew her hands, her eyes peering over.

“It’s a long story...but I was in the same situation you were,” Aseles sighed with hinted exhaustion, “I was lost, on my own, and they found me, Leon and Cloud. And I had a keyblade. That’s all I had; I couldn’t remember anything. Still don’t but...that’s another story.”

“You mean, like amnesia?” Raine gloomed.

“Yes, but...no. But that’s not important,” Aseles shook her head, her thumbs grazing the outside of her pockets, “I thought I couldn’t trust Leon, and the others. They found me, and I was grateful for it, but they were strangers. All I wanted was to go back home...”

“That’s....I’m sorry-“

“No, don’t be. It wasn’t your fault.”

“Still...that’s _really_ sad,” Raine’s mouth sloped further, her arms crossing protectively on her chest, “I...I lost my family too. I don’t know where they are...”

“They’re out there, somewhere I’m sure,” Aseles comforted, her hand reaching to pat Raine’s shoulder. She jumped at the touch, making Aseles suddenly laugh.

“W-What’s so funny??” Raine blurted out.

“You’re pretty jumpy. I’ve seen that before, that’s all,” Aseles joked, withdrawing her hand to rub her right shoulder. “Anyways, I think it’s important for you to know that you’re not alone, in a situation like this. We’ve all lost our homes in some way, but that’s why we’re here in Radiant Garden, making sure everyone like us has a place to stay. You’re one of us now.”

“I....suppose so,” Raine frowned again, her fingers rubbing her opposite thumb roughly.

“But I get it,” Aseles sighed, nodding knowingly, “Have all the time you need to get yourself comfortable. Right now we’re dealing with dangerous things, and the last thing we want is to get you into some kind of trouble.”

“What do you mean?” Raine inquired after a moment.

“Our keyblades, there are people out there who have them too, but....it’s not for good,” Aseles grimaced lightly, her hand rubbing her jaw, “There’s this saying that Light and Darkness can never be apart, no matter how different they are. The Light cannot shine without the Darkness, and the Darkness cannot hide if there’s no Light. That’s what we have in our hearts...but that’s why we have conflicts, Heartlesses. There’s always a battle happening, whether it is outside, or inside of you.”

“Hmm...I think I get it...” Raine nodded gently. “What side are we...then?”

Aseles smiled, “The good side.”

“....Can it be either or?”

Aseles blinked, “What do you mean?”

“Can...you do good with Darkness? Can you do bad with Light?”

“I.....never thought of it that way before...honestly,” Aseles confessed.

“Hmm....but the good side, okay,” Raine agreed, even though her comment was now conflicting with Aseles.

“But if you need any help, the Hollow Bastion Committee is here for that. Leon and the others. You can find them in Merlin’s Study or the U.S.S.”

“Oh....I see.”

“Well, I could show you around, so you don’t get lost. Would that help?” Aseles offered, and for a moment she saw a gleaming spark cross Raine’s lavender pearls.

“Y-Yes, I would like that very much.”

The trip started to the U.S.S. for its closeness, and the duo traveled along the path toward the great height of the Postern. Raine appeared to be taking kindly to the landscape of the morning sky, making Aseles smile that she was doing something right. Once a quick explanation about the Study inside, the two trekked back, and it was only when they reached the Bailey again that Aseles got to hear a bit more.

Raine was a single child, and was attending high school. She liked music a lot, and was interested in music theory and literature. Gosh, it felt like a century since Aseles remembered something as school; heck, she did not know if she went to school or not, it was all blurred. She was highly dependent on the lessons Leon gave her, and the occasional book Aerith made her read once in a while.

From whatever recollection Raine had, she was woken up by an abrupt noise, and found her entire vision swamped in darkness. She didn’t remember anything after that, making her worry of where her parents were.

“Maybe they’re out there looking for you,” Aseles reassured her. They made their way into the Market Place, and headed down to the Castle Town.

“I....suppose so,” Raine sighed dejectedly, her hands running to squish her cheeks together. Aseles frowned at the watery ducts formed along the edge of her lower lids. What else could she say to cheer her up, when nothing cheered herself up when she was lost and alone as her once before....

“Aseles!” Her head whirled from the near voice, and the corners of her mouth perked up to see it was Stan.

“Hey,” Aseles greeted when he came to a stop in front, his hands supporting himself on his knees from his hasty run. “Where are you off to in such a hurry?”  
“Hah, nowhere. I saw you,” Stan chuckled, wiping his forehead with the back of his hand. “Oh..I’ve never seen _you_ around before.”

Raine’s shy demeanor swept her immediately, her hands fiddling in front, “Um, hi...”

“This is Raine, and she’s staying here for the time being,” Aseles introduced with a smile. “Raine, this is Stan. He’s a good kid.”

“For now,” the younger boy joked with a sleazy smile.

“Uh huh,” Aseles rolled her eyes, dragging her hand down the front of his hair, making it all collect along his eyes.

He smacked her hand away, fixing his spikes back, “Well, if you’re friends with Aseles, you’re friends with me!”

Raine blinked of the sudden circumstance, “That’s....really sweet- I mean, you don’t even know me.”

“Ahh,” Stan waved his hand to the side dismissively, “We’re all friends here. Hey, if you’re ever free, maybe I can show you around.”

“That would be nice of you. I’m not sure when we’ll be heading out again. Probably this afternoon,” Aseles hummed, stuffing a hand in a pocket.

“Huh? You’re leaving soon?” Raine cut in, throwing Aseles off-balance of the sudden urgency.

“Oh, don’t worry. She comes back, like always,” Stan beamed, “Gotta go save the worlds, right?”

“Yeah...” Aseles quirked a smile, nodded gently. Though, in this context, the group had discussed going back to Olympus Coliseum for the tournament Sora was certain was open. Not to mention, Donald was too greedy to pass up a good prize. “But we’ll be back soon, faster I’m sure this time.”

“Ahh...okay,” Raine scowled lightly.

“Hmm, what’s wrong?” Aseles’ eyebrows joined together, head tilted to inspect her better past her hair.

“Well...I feel safer....when you’re here.” Aseles could feel the small crease of pink bloom along her cheeks, but she swallowed to try to relocate her next move. But...she didn’t have one. It was unexpected for Raine to say, considering they just met. Was it the fact that Aseles approached her first? Not that she wanted to be mean, but Aseles couldn’t stay rooted in one place with the situations going on.

“That’s-“ she paused right after, recognizing the flaming red spikes walking through the emerging crowd of buyers. Axel waved them across, relieving Aseles of the awkward situation she pushed herself in now.

“It’s Volcano Head,” Stan swayed on his heels, chuckling.

“Gosh is that his nickname now?” Aseles looked over, seeing Stan grin.

“I heard that,” Axel replied a couple of yards away, directing a finger to the boy.

The young teen snickered, “See ya!” He was off, dashing into the crowd of the Market Place.

Axel scoffed of his escape, hands clutching his hips, “That little runt, thinks he can get away with calling me something so dumb.”

“Well....I think it fits. You’re kind of explosive,” Aseles giggled, looking over to see Raine avoid Axel’s gaze. Axel followed, and suddenly his hand clamped on top of Raine’s head, making her turn to stare at him directly. Her eyes widened, and Aseles attempted to intervene. Axel’s free hand nudged her off, his attention back to Raine.

“So, you’re the new kid on the block,” Axel identified rather than questioned.

“Uh-um-yes,” Raine arms erected into straight pillars at her sides, her throat jumping of her heavy swallow.

“Hmm...” Axel narrowed his eyes, fingerless-gloved hands jumping their fingertips along the back of her head. “If you need anything, you tell me, alright? Can’t have you getting lost around here.”

“O-Okay,” Raine gulped, cracking an eye open from the close contact of Axel’s face peering right at her.

“Good,” Axel smirked, and stood himself properly up after giving her a pat on the head. Aseles stared at him in a dead-panned expression, resisting the urge to punch him in the gut for scary Raine. Her sigh readdressed Axel’s attention to her, his fingers snapping of the sudden revelation.

“Oh, right! I came to come get you,” Axel announced, his long finger pressing at Aseles’ forehead.

“Is it Leon?” she asked.

“You bet. They’re in the U.S.S., with that Merlin wizard. Says it’s important,” Axel answered.

“Alright then, lead the way,” Aseles waved her arm in front.

“Stay close kids, don’t want to get lost in the mob,” Axel grinned, and started to walk in the certain direction.

“Who is Axel to you?” Raine asked as the duo of girls followed.

“Oh, he’s.......a friend. A _good_ friend,” Aseles hummed, rubbing her cheek gently. “Why, does it look like we could be something else?”

“Hmm...he acts like a brother to you,” Raine pointed out. Aseles’ mouth twitched a bit, smiling widely of the sudden comment. She laughed with a shake of her head, shrugging right after.

“I guess we are huh?” she chuckled, unaware of the generous, uplifting smile that the redhead held up in front.

_Wouldn’t that be something?_ Axel thought.

 

Riku's POV:  
The way Leon observed him was troubling, the distinction between judgment and suspicion extremely blurred. Perhaps he didn't sleep too well and was assuming things? Or were Riku's secrets now threatening to be unleashed? Had Aseles talked to Leon? No, not that he knew of, or Leon would've lectured him. She was keeping up her guard, making things much more difficult. Great.

With the new addition of the stranger, it complicated things that Riku was unprepared for. He had sent a letter almost immediately after bringing the girl here, and he waited anxiously for a reply back. Had His Majesty now gotten the letter yet? Or did he and he was contemplating on what to say or rationalize the whole situation?

His body straightened up when the door opened, revealing it to be a drowsy Sora. His heavy lids fluttered, and his arms straightened out with sluggish movements. His sky eyes fumbled a bit before they widened, catching Riku, Merlin and Leon around the table.

"Hey," Sora greeted happily, walking over. "For a minute I thought Axel was pranking me to get up so early."

"It's ten in the morning," Leon replied flatly.

"You'll be lucky to find him awake before noon honestly," Riku crossed his arms, his back resting against his chair. Sora humored him further with a quick dart of his eyes.

"Very funny" Sora grumbled, walking over and taking the seat beside Riku. Riku grinned slightly, shrugging. "Who are we waiting on? Aseles?"

Merlin nodded, "Yes, precisely."

"There's something serious Merlin wants to talk to you about, regarding some information from Yen Sid," Leon added. "And since I'm responsible for you, I have to be present."

"Oh, so like a dad?" Sora indicated.

".............Sure," Leon took a long pause to respond, but the answer made Sora chuckle. Well, to Riku's honesty, Leon was more of a father to Aseles than Ansem was...as cruel as it sounded.

The noise of footsteps oncoming made Riku’s pose stiffen marginally, finding the tan figure walking in. Aseles' eyes followed the ground before they lifted to the table, and her shoulders poised upright momentarily when she located Riku. The two held a longer glance when she approached, but they broke their trance when Aseles acknowledged Leon.

"Hey," she smiled casually.

"Morning," Leon smiled back. "Have a seat." She pulled up a chair beside Merlin, sitting across from Sora and now diagonal to Riku.

Again, the two gripped each other's sight while she fixed her chair, and looked away to glance at Leon who remained in the head seat.

"Are we in trouble?" Aseles asked naturally, making Merlin chuckle.

"Absolutely not. But we do have news to share with the three of you," Merlin explained. "Yen Sid sent me a message to inform you that he needs to see you soon."

"All three of us?" Sora blinked.

"Does it have to do with...a test he mentioned?" Aseles recalled.

Merlin nodded, "Indeed it does. Did he inform you about it already?"

"Well, it was a while ago. He didn't say much," Sora added, scratching his head. "Though, we need to head to a world this afternoon."

"Is it of grave importance?" Merlin hooked his fingers over one another on the table, inspecting Sora.

"Kinda...? We promised some friends we would participate in this tournament-"

"Oh ho! Goofing off to play some swords and dragons, are we???" Merlin snapped out, his hand meticulously stroking his beard in an ebullient manner.

"Uhhhhhh......" Sora droned out, making Aseles sigh.

"In the Underworld, we encountered a fake keyblade wielder controlling a friend of ours," Aseles stated, catching Merlin's attention now.

"Yes yes, Leon has informed me of the piece being extracted."

"We figured the guy might still be there, participating in the games. If we catch him, he can tell us where he got the keyblade.."

"...Hmmmm...." Merlin sat himself back down, slowing his fingers through his white strings. Aseles and Sora waited anxiously, but sighed in relief to see Merlin nod in approval of their trip.

"That sounds of the upmost important," Merlin indicated. "All right, I suppose I shall let you go; you could put a stop to the Substitutes interference in the world. But once you're done, you must head straight to Yen Sid's. I will receive word, and take Riku with me. Is that clear?"

"Yes," Aseles and Sora replied with united nods.

"Good. But to give you some insight, this test will determine about your positions with your keyblades. Yen Sid himself has not told me much about it, but I'm sure you'll pass with flying colors."

"Heh, thanks Merlin," Sora smiled widely. "Then we better get our stuff prepared for later today."

"Say...Merlin?" Aseles questioned.

"Hmm?"

"Have you talked to...Raine?" All eyes directed to the brunette, and followed to the wizard.

"I have, actually," Merlin's bushy mustache drooped downwards. "But she has not told me much, much less remember where she got her keyblade. It's real, absolutely, but whatever information she holds is embedded in the memories she can't remember." Aseles nodded gently, her frown apparent as she looked to the table. Riku exhaled quietly through his nose, his chest flattening down and stone underneath his crossed arms. She was concerned, far more than anyone else was. Was it possible Raine had opened up to her? Or was it that Aseles wanted Raine to relate to her to form a trusted bond?

"If it's necessary-" Riku cut in, his eyes meeting Aseles' effectively before turning to Leon, "-Kairi and me will watch her."

"Are you sure?" Leon asked. Riku took a moment, but in that second he knew Aseles was harshly gazing to him, waiting for him to reply, to say something wrong to give her further suspicion.

But Riku stayed firm, "Yeah, I'm sure. Axel is with her now?" Aseles answered only after Riku turned to look at her, as if she was trying to decode his true intention.

"Yeah...Axel's watching her," she replied.

"Then Merlin and I will try to extract the keyblade piece again with Cloud," Leon nodded in agreement. “Cid will help you prepare the ship. You need any more supplies, inform him and he’ll get you what you request.”

“Thanks,” Sora smiled in appreciation. He stood up, fists on his sides, “Ready, Aseles?”

“Yeah, ready,” Aseles responded back. The table cleared, Riku remaining in his seat with his eyes resting on the edge of the furniture. He pressed his fingers against his forehead, rubbing generously of any stress he was feeling. “Hey.”

Riku paused, blinking once before looking up, “Hmm?” Aseles sat down hesitantly, but pulled her chair up to lean into him properly. Riku raised a brow, noticing Aseles’ relaxed shoulders and her smooth expression. It was honestly a huge change for someone like him.

“I know....we’ve been- I wanted to say thanks for...looking after Raine,” she replied softly, her hand cupping and rubbing the side of her neck.

“It’s not a problem, Aseles. I mean,” Riku sighed, shrugging one shoulder up, “We used to be on the same predicament as she was. We don’t want her to feel alone, and I know you can relate to her better than any of us.”

“I’m worried, that’s all,” Aseles frowned. “What if she doesn’t remember?”

_What if she remembers and doesn’t want to tell us?_ He thought.

“Has she told you anything?” Riku asked instead.

Aseles took a moment, “About how she got her keyblade, no, she doesn’t remember anything. She told me a bit about herself, but that’s about it.”

“Hmmm...” Riku found it suspicious, but decided not to call Raine out on it. “We’ll try to get her comfortable, and see if she tells us anything.”

“Alright,” Aseles agreed. “Thanks, Riku.”

“Aseles…” Riku reached to cup her wrist, preventing her from getting up. Aseles looked over, a soft sigh breathing out from her tensed chest. He took a moment to fully study her, and needless to say, she didn’t sleep well the night before. She recovered from her coma ordeal, but something in her eyes lingered, withheld her. Her eyes were not as bright as he had remembered, as if the toxin lodged into her had transfigured the color to a dark shade. Perhaps it was his own restlessness that made him think that way.

“I know we have…differences about doing things, but I want to let you know that I’m your friend, and I don’t ever want to harm you,” Riku confessed genuinely, making Aseles fixate her eyes across his face.

“I know…” she replied soon after, her fingers interlacing with his, “I might not say much to you, but I’m just trying to figure this all out, you know?”

“You don’t have to do it alone…” Riku whispered out gently. Aseles had leaned a bit, the two practically pressing the sides of their heads against each other. He had never been this close to her, where he could see individual strands, the shades of her hidden ear beneath the dark chocolate drapes. The way her shoulder was slightly the darkest part of her arm, from standing so close to the sun.

“Sometimes….I feel that I have to,” Aseles confessed, her fingers clutching at his. He squeezed back, and in the deepest valley of his stomach, he felt the bubbling, muffled sounds of guilt sinking and delving into his bones. He tried his best to not shake, and he opened his mouth to console her, to tell her that he knew how to fix it, fix everything, fix her-

_Promise me, Riku._

_Do not tell her, Riku._

_She is not ready._

Riku shut his eyes, and he let out a strained, repeated answer, “….Okay.” Aseles let him go, and he complied, the warmth of her fingers still lingering along his digits after she was gone. He sat still in his seat, looking to the ground with his silver hair hung at the sides of his head, concealing his distraught glance.

_“I could have told her….and you ruined it, Ansem.”_

_It was the right thing to do._

_“No, no it wasn’t. Listening to you was the worst decision of my life.”_

_It is a decision you must comply._

_“I need to tell her. I need to tell Aseles what you did.”_

_You will ruin her. You will destroy her if you do. Let nature take its course. Let things solve naturally._

_“Is that what you did? Is what you did natural to her?”_

_No, but I want to correct it._

_“I have to tell her. She’s my friend.”_

_And as her friend, you must protect her._

“Riku?” He picked up his head, eyes stoned with mouth a firm line. His eyes picked up to look at Leon, who then looked to the door where Axel, and the strange girl named Raine waited.

“Ready for babysitting?” Axel grinned, his large, slender hand drumming at the top of Raine’s head.

“It wouldn’t be the first time,” Riku admitted, and walked over.

 

ASELES’ POV, LATER:

It was strange to drive the gummi ship this time around; she figured to let the others catch up on sleep. She was tired herself, but she knew sleep wasn’t going to do her much good anyways.

With the navigation system updated, it was easier to drive through the course, now on a faster route to arrive to Olympus. A mere hour in, they were merely fifteen minutes away, easing Aseles drastically in her seat. Not that she had any Heartless gummi ship to worry about this time around.

She rolled her head, feeling the tension release from her stiff posture, but the same could not be said for her mind. Her ended conversation with Riku felt…sudden, misplaced and put on the wrong shelf that she couldn’t reach. She was shocked to get more than a sentence from him, but something from the way he looked at her influenced her curiosity. After a few seconds of waiting, he simply left it at that, disappointing her. She moped at the thought, letting the thought linger out once she saw the world coming into view.

“If only you were here, Terra…” she sighed. “If only I remembered…”

The landing was smooth, and the gang hopped out to watch the gummi ship rise to the bright, cerulean sky. The immediate, humid breeze made Aseles shiver, having been coated in an air-conditioned environment moments prior. There was a lot of bustling in the city of Thebes, the occasional marketer pushing and hauling crates and goats. Sells of different colored flags were abundant in people’s hands, setting the whole city in a rally of colored fabrics.

“Guess we’re all going to the same place,” Sora smirked while he followed the crowd to the single direction they were all merging toward: the Coliseum.

Once arriving at the opening area of the gates, the heroes pushed through the tight crowd to head around the bend, catching their breath and wiping their brows from the rising heat of the noon. A swelling feeling of excitement commenced as the people entered the front gates, filling the entire arena with cheers and shouts.

“Look!” Goofy shouted with a pointed finger, and redirected the group’s attention. A large board was rolled to the side entrance of the columned building, a line forming with Phil holding a piece of parchment, and an inked quill in his right hand. He was checking people off, reading off the names from the board to let the competitors inside in said order.

“Look who decided to show up!” a familiar male announced from ahead. Aseles took notice of the raven-haired man headed to them, and smiled at his solid, cheerful expression.

“Zack!” Sora greeted, the two clashing a fierce handshake together.

“You guys arrived just in time!” he winked.

“Wouldn’t miss it for anything,” Sora grinned with hands behind his head.

“So what about the rest of you? You excited?” he peered to Donald, Goofy and Aseles.

“We’ll beat these guys no problem!” Donald stated confidently, twirling his casted wand in his hand.

“Haha, I’d like to see that!” Zack chuckled, “Though, there’s someone I would like you to meet!” He turned and whistled out, “Bella, come here!” Aseles peered over his side, seeing a young teen arriving. She stood behind Zack, gave everyone a confident nod, and firmed her hands immediately on her straight hips.

She was adorned in a one shouldered shirt, colored a dark green with the side of it tied to secure a hold across her athletic form. Her black, battered pants depicted great wear and battles, the ends tucked inside a pair of brown, short-heeled boots. Her tight fists were covered in fingerless gloves. Her hair was long and bright brown, reaching to her lower back with most of it on the front side of her arms. Her full green eyes scanned the group, almost judging everyone by how powerful they were.

“Guys, I would like you to meet Bella, my apprentice,” Zack grinned, stepping back to present her properly with a clamp to her shoulder.

“Hey there, I’m Sora,” Sora greeted first, holding a hand out to her. She looked at it, and then took it deliberately with a secure grip, nodding once, “This is Aseles, Donald and Goofy,” Sora finished.

“So you guys are joining the matches too?” Bella asked, “Zack tells me a lot about you, and how powerful you are. I can’t wait to see it!”

“We bet you’ll do great,” Goofy added with a beam of a smile and a thumbs up.

“Well if you’re against Bella, good luck,” Zack grinned. “Rooted her with the best training to become a Soldier.”

“Heh, you that good?” Aseles looked to her, hands in pockets.

“Without a doubt,” Bella flashed a grin, “As if I was going to go easy against my competitors.”

“Haha, she’s going to cream them,” Zack smiled as he ruffled her hair with a hand.

“Zack,” she groaned, pushing his hand away.

He only smiled wider as then he turned to the others, “Auron will be here soon, or so he told me. And I hear some other competitors signed up.”

“Ah, they’ll be a piece of cake!” Sora beamed with a hand rubbing his chin. “The prize is going to be worth it, I’m sure.”

“Ha, as if we knew what it was,” Zack dropped his shoulder, tilting his head, “It should be good if so many people signed up for the tournament.”

“Looks, there’s Auron!” Goofy pointed to see the approaching man. He stepped forward causally as he stood on Zack’s other side, looking at the four with much familiarity.

“It’s been a while,” he replied coolly.

“No kidding. Ready to get beaten?” Sora joked.

“If you are,” Auron chuckled.

“Alright, what are we waiting for? Let’s get this going!” Zack threw his arms in the air.

“Is he always this excited?” Aseles giggled, crossing her eyes over to Bella.

“Always is an understatement,” Bella rolled her eyes.

The group were attended by Phil (who was happily relieved of gang’s arrival), and taken to the main platform of the stadium. The seats were filled to the brim with Thebes’ residents, all clapping and roaring with jeers and cries. Phil stood in front of the line of fighters, holding his hands up to silence the crowd as best as he could while shouting at the top of his lungs.

“Spectators of Thebes, I give you your opponents!” Phil waved an arm to the line. Aseles’ eyes scanned down the row from both sides, seeing Hercules was in for the win. His eyes caught her looking to him, and he gave a thumbs up which she returned with a smile. Her eyes glazed over, and suddenly stopped on a familiar blond- holy crap Cloud was here??? She didn’t even notice him arrive, and she nudged Sora’s shoulder, indicating Cloud’s presence with a nod of her head.

“Oh boy,” Donald sighed, slapping his hand to his face, “It’s going to be like last time.”

“...What happened last time?” Sora leaned, making Donald stare flatly at him.

“He wiped us on the floor, Sora,” Donald replied, making Aseles snicker of his attitude. Her eyes continued, and caught several warriors from Thebes, adorned in battle armor and helmets and equipped with swords. Her eyes narrowed to two mysterious figures standing side by side, one adorned in a gauze along their entire body, with a pair of baggy shorts and a short top. They looked like a ninja from top to bottom, but Aseles couldn’t be so sure what weapon they would use. Then her eyes went to the farthest figure, tall and hooded with a dark cloak. Her eyes narrowed vastly, seeing the blade attached to his back, the handle wrapped in cloth and long enough to wrap around the wrist and forearm. A dark, brooding temper fluttered around the man’s figure, but she couldn’t make out his face clearly from the shadow of his hood. Why did....he look....did she know him?

“One round per fight! Last opponent standing wins and heads to the next round!” Phil announced loudly, “Out of the ring, out of the tournament! First up, Zack!!”

“Whoo!” Zack cheered, saluting Bella and the gang before pulling his sword out and stood in the middle of the arena with his opponent, a simple warrior from Thebes. The rest of the competitors took the seats of a secluded, box area in front of the west stands, watching as Phil stood in between the two competitors for a quick announcement.

“LET THE MATCH, BEGIN!” Phil roared out, and the crowd returned the gesture.

Sora and his group sat in the middle row of seats, waving briefly to Cloud who caught their sight before the older man turned to look at Zack with interest (Aseles wondered if they knew one another). In the meantime, Bella sat next to Aseles, with the empty seat on her left for Zack. Aseles inspected the holster around her waist, brimming with a pair of shined, metallic guns. Huh…she had never seen anyone pick a firearm as their weapon a choice, except for Leon who had the raw deal of two in one with his hidden blade.

“That’s an interesting pair for your weapons,” Aseles commented, her hands patting her outstretched knees.

Bella turned, “Yeah...Nice of you to notice.”

“How’s Zack as a teacher? He must be...always hyper for it,” Aseles turned, chuckling at the sight of Zack edging and taunting his opponent after throwing him off balance.

“That’s just putting it simply, really,” Bella shook her head, scoffing, “But he’s a great teacher believe it or not.”

“Hmm, he seems like it. Digs the training atmosphere from what I’ve seen.”

“So any particular reason why you signed up?” Bella continued, looking over to Aseles.

“Well....” Aseles hummed, trying to think of a simple way to put it.

“Ah, still looking for the keyblade wielders, huh?” Bella instigated.

“Oh, did Zack tell you about it?”

Bella nodded, her lips lopsided, “He told me just in case we saw that guy again, but he never showed up. So, you think he signed up for the games?”

“He might have not, but it doesn’t mean he won’t show,” Aseles narrowed her eyes, looking past the fight to scan the crowd in front for any suspicious individual.

“Sounds like a huge problem. I tend to hear…things among the city about them,” Bella groaned, puffing out an annoyed exhale, “I can’t stand the sight of fake people like those….honestly, annoying.” The crowd cut into a swift cheering, Zack disarming the warrior before him, and giving chase as the man leapt for his sword.

“We need all the help we can get.”

Bella grinned with a wink, “You bet. Aseles, right?”

“Right.”

“Haha, never heard of the name. Not from around here, huh?”

“No, not really,” Aseles smiled nervously, “Worth the trip though.”

“Haha, of course,” Bella agreed. Suddenly the shouts escalated, a chanting of “Zack!” exploding in the stadium. “Not surprised,” Bella smirked, clapping her hands alongside the crowd, and some of the competitors in the seating box.

“Good luck out there,” Aseles encouraged with a broad smile.

Bella laughed a bit, turning to look at her properly, “You too. Would be pretty sweet to fight you.”

“Uh...me?” Aseles signaled with a finger.

“You don’t seem to be the one to hold back,” she winked, making Aseles crook a smile of her compliment.

“Wouldn’t be bad to fight you either.”

“ZACK IS THE VICTOR!” The stadium nearly shook of the shouts, the area smeared of brightly colored flag waving around. Aseles looked over to see Zack’s arms extended out, his sword in hand. The defeated warrior gave him a cold look, but grumbled under his breath as he was led off the platform and Zack redirected to the seats. He came up, completely adrenalized and grinning so wide Aseles was sure it was going to permanent the next couple of minutes.

“BELLA! You’re up!” Phil called from in front.

“Go get ‘em!” Zack encouraged, giving her a pat on the back, “Remember your training!” Bella nodded at his words, and proudly walked down from the platform and made her way to the arena with her opponent in front. She whistled to herself calmly, and reached both hands to her waist to pull out the guns Aseles took note of earlier. She spun the triggers around her fingers, clearly advanced in her handling of them.

“Oh, I bet she’s going to do great,” Goofy clapped, waiting patiently.

“DONALD!” Sora clapped enthusiastically, Donald resting his wand over his shoulder as he got up and made his way through the seats to approach Bella.

“You can do it, duck!” Sora cheered crazily, making Goofy snicker.

“Good luck, Donald! You’re gonna need it!” Zack called out, making nearly everyone turn to look at him, including the duck who gave a deadpanned look.

“Thaaaaaanks,” he called out, his face a bit red from the developing irritation. The crowd waited in anticipation as Phil explained a few ground rules for the two.

A figure in dark made a motion over. Aseles and Zack looked to see Cloud had made his way over, his stern expression ever cold and never changing. Sora, Goofy and Aseles watched in anticipation as Zack stood to the man’s height, the two sharing a stare.

“Well....look at what we got here...” Zack began, crossing his arms languidly, “A swordsman, a Soldier nonetheless.” Aseles had never seen something break so fast; Cloud’s serious manner dropped instantly, and it was replaced by a smile she had never seen before on the blond’s face. Zack laughed, gripping Cloud’s outstretched hand in a brotherly manner.

“You two know each other?” Goofy asked, all three sharing a glance back and forth between the men.

“You bet! Training brings us back a long way,” Zack smiled, placing his knuckles on his hips, “Been a long time actually, huh Strife?”

Cloud cocked an eyebrow, a smirk rising to the occasion, “Figured you would show up. Why miss out?”

“That’s the spirit!” Zack laughed, hooking an arm over Cloud’s shoulder. “You know these group of kids?”

“Hey, we’re not kids!” Sora interjected, a small crease of pink splattered on his cheeks.

“Sure do,” Cloud joked, making Aseles’ mouth drop slightly from his suddenly changed demeanor. He must have known Zack a great deal of time to be so lax and comfortable around him. It was unlike anything Aseles had ever seen, but it brought a strong warmth around her chest to see him so carefree.

“The match is starting!” Goofy indicated, and Aseles quickly shifted a bit more to the side, letting Cloud sit in between her and Zack.

“Your pupil, huh?” Cloud sat back, his gloved fingers drumming along his bulging upper arm.

Zack nudged him with an elbow, grinning widely, “The best there is.” Aseles smiled, letting her shoulder brush against Cloud’s shoulder to make herself comfortable in her seat.

Her eyes motioned over to the arena, watching Donald form himself a defensive barrier, the powerful sound of gunshots hitting maliciously against his magical force field. The shield broke in shards, Donald casting a Thundaga spell to throw Bella off-balance. She was a natural acrobat, the tips of her guns planted to the ground to give her enough elevation to dodge the spell underneath her arched back. She landed perfectly on her feet, her feet spread to prepare her for the next onslaught. The move alone made the crowd burst with cheers, Sora, Donald and Aseles not too far behind to motivate Donald. The far-range of bullets were soon becoming overwhelming for Donald to keep up, his spells a fire and miss from Bella’s agility and distance. She dodged a Firaga spell, her arms parting in front of her and almost bending the flames out of her way to head for a straight sprint to Donald. The duck quacked in surprise, but his wand was shot out of his hand, and clattered beside him. Bella stood over him, guns drawn and making the crowd jump at their feet. Donald huffed in defeat, but took Bella’s offered hand to help him up.

“That was a good match,” Bella smiled, and she bowed her head respectfully down to him, “It was an honor fighting you.” Donald blinked at the gesture, but he smiled at the genuine and respect it held.

“BELLA IS THE WINNER!” Phil announced, Zack shooting himself up with arms outstretched.

“Yeah!! Go Team Fair!” he whooped out, making Bella shoot an embarrassed glare to him.

“Zack, you’re such an old man,” Bella announced as she went to sit beside him on his free left side, a small pout drawing out along her mouth.

“I’m proud of you, kid,” Zack chuckled.

“That was a great match, Donald!” Goofy applauded with as the teammate sat back in his seat, rubbing his head of the collision it had with the ground.

“Thanks guys,” he replied. Aseles reached into her pocket to pull out a potion, and handed it over to Donald who thanked her.

“UP NEXT, SORA!” Phil announced, “VERSUS CLOUD!”

The blond and brunette faced each other in the center of the platform, and the first clang of swords flooded the arena like sirens. The crowd screamed in frantic and entertained cries, Aseles feeling her chest heaving of the heavy battle in front of her. Sora was quick and precise in his attacks while Cloud maintained his granite posture, hastily swinging his buster sword in harsh swipes. Sora recovered from the strikes, and set his primary attacks on lowering Cloud’s defensive manner, a spin of aerial attacks stunning Cloud to stagger in place.

“Go, Sora!” Donald and Goofy cheered on Aseles’ right while Zack shouted for Cloud on her left. The battle dragged on with powerful combos and hits, and the air was electrified with Cloud’s burst of bolts igniting the field. Sora tossed his keyblade over his head, blocking Cloud’s pouring raids. He gritted his teeth, and sent the older man skidding back, two keyblades now in hand. From there on, Cloud struggled to offend his blows, and in a matter of minutes, his buster sword was stabbed to the ground, aiding his hunched stature to keep stand. The blond fighter shook his head, and lifted his hand.

“THE WINNER IS SORA!” Phil shouted, gaining applause and whistles from the crowd. Sora hurried to Cloud’s side, and lifted his keyblade up to conjure a Cura. The duo was overcome in a jade luscious light, Cloud now able to stand himself properly.

“Thanks, Sora,” Cloud nodded, earning a smile from the keyblade wielder.

Up next was Goofy, his team immediately cheering for him when he made it to the low stage. His opponent, the hooded figure walked to face him. The tattered, brown cloth wavered in the feeble wind, and his hidden face gave Aseles a harsh, moldered emotion in her gut. She swallowed heavily when the match started, and she gasped when Goofy was suddenly skidded across the ground, feet staggering to hold him up. The hooded figure rested his open sword at the side, its blade brimming with a dark presence. The cloth around the handle was wrapped suitably around the figure’s wrist, and his sudden speed across the ground even made the crowd gasp of how lightning fast he was. He barely touched the ground, and the crowd screamed when Goofy’s shield was slapped against the oncoming sword. He was airborne, and sent flying out of the ring.

“GOOFY IS DISQUALIFIED!” a shocked Phil announced. The hooded figure removed the gauze around his wrist, and placed his gladiator sword onto the metal sheath attached to his back. The crowd burst into jumping jubilation, Sora and Donald immediately jumping over the low wall of the seating-box.

“Oh, jeezes,” Zack whispered out. Aseles swiftly stood up, looking over to see Goofy was sat up, Sora giving their friend a potion.

“Oh, I’m okay fellas. I’ve been hit harder lots of times,” Goofy reassured, making Sora and Donald sigh of relief.

“Jeezes, Goof,” Sora helped him up while Donald brushed off his back. Aseles’ eyes slowly maneuvered around, and they curtly laid onto the hooded character who paused near his seat. Aseles inspected him with baited breath, feeling the dark eyes underneath studying her.

_What are you afraid of the most?_

“Aseles, hey!” She winced, rubbing her forehead from unexpected stun, her eyes flickering to look at Zack and Hercules standing on either side of her.

“Hey, you okay?” Hercules patted her back gently, gaining her attention.

“I-I’m fine,” Aseles breathed out, looking away from the figure to watch Sora, Donald and Goofy approaching.

“He’s alright, there’s nothing to worry,” Hercules replied, “We’re here to train and have fun, okay?”

“Yeah….right,” Aseles nodded, seating herself down. Everyone resumed their seats, but her eyes looked past Sora’s head, her chest stilled to prevent her from making a sound. She saw the hooded figure’s head tilted…and looking straight in her direction from the back row. She swiftly looked away, and jumped at the sound of her name being called out.

_Pay attention._

“ASELES!” She walked hastily to the platform, the sun ten times hotter on her skin, ready to turn her confidence into ash. The whole crowd of spectators stood, jeering as the gladiator man from Thebes was her opponent. The elder man pulled out his sword with shield in his free grip, his angular face concealed in an armored mask and body casted in gladiator armor.

“Go, Aseles!” Sora, Donald and Goofy cheered alongside with Zack and Hercules. Aseles refused to look to the cryptic figure, and instead focused to Phil and the man in front of her. She swung out her keyblade, readying her stance.

“Alright, I want a clean fight warriors!” Phil had to shout over the roaring mass. Aseles nodded, but she scowled when she saw the man lazily holding his sword. What was his attitude about?

_Typical bastard._

“And, FIGHT!” Phil ran out of the field for cover. The crowd was a bit silent this time, leaning their heads forward for the battle to ensue.

“I didn’t think I would get paired with a doll like you...” her opponent unexpectedly declared.

“Excuse me?” Aseles dropped her mouth, staring incredulously to the man. He shrugged, making Aseles shoulders burn that much more.

The man placed the tip of his sword at the ground, quickly slashing at it as he charged. Aseles positioned her feet and swung her occupied hand right across, sending the man spiraling to the ground with a strike. The crowd jumped in throttle.

“Looks like I’m not the one who’s playing,” Aseles threatened, waiting for the man to stand.

“Heh, fine. You asked for it!” he sprung forward, cutting his sword across but to no success; Aseles was quick to react for every attack, effortlessly alternating and spinning her keyblade to avoid any strike and clank. This infuriated her opponent, and he slammed his entire weight forward. Aseles easily skidded to the side, and lifted her keyblade. A contorted and strained grunt escaped from her target, his body fully hanging over the body and neck of her keyblade.

“I….give…” he squeaked out, and Aseles withdrew her keyblade, making the man topple over.

“ASELES IS THE WINNER!” The arena chanted her name, Phil heading over to aid and pull the man aside. Aseles waved briefly, but it dropped when her eyes accidently motioned to the hooded figure who was…clapping at her achievement. She hissed internally, feeling something scorch her right shoulder. She clamped a hand to it, rubbing to lessen the burn.

_So…think you got this?_

Aseles ignored the sting on her forehead, and seated herself. Sora’s eyes tensed of her stature, his cool hand lying inches away from her burning spot.

“Hey…you alright?” he asked.

“Yeah, a bit winded, that’s all-“

“Nah! No way! You took him in one swing!” Zack grinned. Cloud’s icy stare studied her face, but she knew she could never fool someone like him.

The matches progressed as planned, a third gladiator versus the gauzed up, shorter figure of the lot. Easily, the mysterious figure won without a struggle, and Hercules took the gold from Auron. Easily being Hercules’ domain, he was progressed as the fan favorite from the amount of cheers, leaving the rest of the fighters to be paired up. Unfortunately, Zack stood no match against the gauzed figure, not even having to draw out a weapon; a serious flight of jabs sent Zack to the ground.

“I didn’t even see the guy move,” Zack confessed once he seated himself, making everyone eye the victor carefully. Second match was Bella, and the hooded figure that had refused to give a name. The air stilled this time, but Bella was easily overpowered from the close-range fighter, and the sudden expansion of his dark-fueled, unnerving blade.

“Bella!” Sora cried out, Zack the first one over the barrier to pick her up. The hooded figure merely passed them, and Aseles shivered from the way his face craned to look at her rather than look where he was walking. He sat back down, Aseles gritting her teeth from how strong he was. She…had to confront him about something, she had a feeling she had to, but she couldn’t. She wasn’t sure what to run with if she only had a hunch. She hoped to get the last match with him, but it wasn’t going to be an easy task when Phil called her and Sora to step up to the plate.

She faced her powerful friend, but something told her she had to win this fight, to get the match against the hooded figure. She could not grant Sora the win.

Both charged and swam the entire field in accurate plummets and strikes, the two pushing each other balance and recovering to try again. An array of Thunder and Fire attacks roamed to catch up to Sora’s speed, but she dodged and blocked, already accustomed to Sora’s way of attacking. She maneuvered her play on the defensive, wanting to tire him out to gain her an easier win, and it worked.

After careful planning and striking, Aseles defeated Sora with a hard push of Thunder bolts, making the brunette fall onto his side, his hand trickling of her spell. Aseles was declared the winner, but hurried to aid Sora back up.

“Looks like you got some tricks up your sleeve, huh?” Sora chuckled, wincing briefly from the soreness that the hi-potion was slowly healing.

“Sorry...about that...” Aseles confessed, having second thoughts of going against her possible opponent.

“No worries, keep it up because you’re going to the next round. I doubt they’ll go easy on you,” he nodded.

Phil approached with a grin, “Look at my heroes, never thought I would see the day to get to see you battle one on one. You’ll be heading to the Third Round! You ready, kid?”

Aseles nodded carefully, “Yeah….” Her vision floated over the seats, and they rested onto the hooded figure, whose darkened face rose from staring at the ground. Her glare hardened, unable to push this angry, unsettling rumbling in her clouded mind.

 

_There’s no use running._

_I will change the future by rewriting the past._

_My mind has already been made up._

_It’s time to make yours._

 

Where…where had she seen him??

 

LATER:

A quick recess was addressed, Aseles trying her best to regain her footing on her thoughts; everything was sliding and slipping down like a catastrophic avalanche. The pulled pieces were stretching, distorting in an unfashionable vortex. She felt the increasing burn on her shoulder, but dared not to see what it was nor alarm anyone in the group. She had to wait until she got back to Radiant Garden, and have Leon take a look at it. The hooded figure was someone she had to confront, but the second fighter was no means disregarded. They merely disappeared after the recess was called, but she avoided all contact with the unknown fighter who kept an eye on her. She wasn’t sure if it was a fib of her imagination, considering no one else was taking notice of his silent yet intimidating presence.

Back outside, the crowd was replenished with water and treats, their colorful banners waving back and forth with the same vivacious energy from earlier. Aseles waited anxiously in her seat, being one of the last four remaining fighters of the semi-finals.

Phil bellowed to the crowd, Aseles not registering her name being called until Bella and Sora nudged her out of her trance, “ASELES! STEP FORWARD!” Damn it, that left Hercules with her favored opponent.

She sighed, standing readily as she faced the almost mummified fighter. She took notice of their fair skin, a few strands of dark hair plucked out at the sides and front. A pair of dark eyes were shielded beneath a silt of fabric. She couldn’t make out the face, from how constantly they were moving and swaying in place.

“Give me a clean fight, alright?” Phil announced, and left before any of them could respond back. They both locked eyes, and the way the figure staggered made Aseles feel unbalanced on her own.

“Watch his footwork, Aseles!” Zack shouted out.

“Give him everything you got!” chimed in Donald with a cheering Sora and Goofy.

“BEGIN!” Almost automatically, Aseles hit the air, gasping with the wind knocked out of her. Her keyblade rattled in her grip, and the crowd grew stunned of the quick kick of the fighter. Aseles gritted her teeth, stabbing the head of her keyblade onto the ground to support her. She looked up past her bangs, seeing the fighter hastily approaching.

“Concentrate!” Sora shouted.

A kick flew downwards, but Aseles was ready this time. She deflected the blow with the neck of the keyblade, and shot a heavy uppercut against her foe. The person rolled across the air, and hit the ground, causing the crowd to pound their feet on the stone stands. Aseles wiped the edge of her mouth with the back of her hand, intently glaring at the standing fighter.

“I’m not losing to you,” Aseles retorted, and charged. The agile adversary dashed across the space, meeting Aseles in between with harsh kicks and punches. Aseles dodged and rebounded , but she knew she had to move onto the offensive if she wanted to win this fight.

In a frantic attempt, Aseles lifted her keyblade’s guard, letting her foe inside her circle. The figure jabbed both arms forward, but their side was suddenly caught in Aseles’ arm snatching at it, keyblade in her left hand.

“Wha- let go!” the female cried, wriggling in Aseles’ grip.

Aseles slammed her keyblade against her own feet, “FIRE!” A gust of fire swallowed the two contenders, Aseles screaming along with the young woman. The crowd gasped and cried in confusion and shock, Aseles able to hear her friends calling from the stands. The weight in her arm was too much to bear, and she let go, letting the scrambling opponent go. Aseles grunted and seethed at her burns, but paid no mind to it the moment she lifted her gaze, and looked to the unmasking female.

Her gauze was entirely smothered in ripples of flames, and she had to tug off the remains of it from her face. Her purple hair was withered darkly at the ends, and her bright, lilac eyes stared bewildered at Aseles, caught in a treacherous act of deception. Her eyes shot to the side, and she immediately began to sprint, her resemblance too much to ignore.

“No, stop!” Aseles gaze chase, seething at her recent wounds. “Don’t let her get away!” The crowd tossed into a panic, but Sora, Donald and Goofy immediately caught Aseles’ words, and lunged forward to block the girl from running. Zack and Bella captured her at the left side, Auron and Cloud now in view with Hercules and Phil blocking whatever exit she could take. She gritted her teeth angrily, an irritated snarl hissing at the group.

“Aseles, you okay?” Donald relieved her pain with Cura, permitting her to stand up properly. The crowd muttered in confusion, standing up to look at the scene closely.

“What is the meaning of this?!” Phil interrogated first, irritated of the intrusion of his games.

“You look like the one we found meddling in the Underworld!” Sora caught his words first, keyblade pointed. All weapons were drawn out now, “The one who was controlling Auron!” The girl groaned in annoyance, removing the rest of the smeared, blackened gauze around her neck. Her short hair rested along the sides of her head, almost perfectly aligned to resemble silk curtains if it weren’t for the flames Aseles launched onto her.

“Tell us who you are!” Zack probed next.

Sora replied angrily, “It’s time you told us what you’re doing here!”

“Tell us your name, now,” Auron demanded coldly.

“It doesn’t matter what my name is! All that matters is is that your plans are finished! You’ll never defeat someone like him!” the girl spat out. She quickly spun her hand out, and everyone backed up defensively to see a keyblade shine out, fashioned much like the one Aseles and the gang had come across before.

A grin smeared across her face, “While you pathetic weasels were out here, fighting your precious games, my twin brother, Aaron went to go find the prize for the tournament!”

“...No! That’s impossible!” Hercules shook his head frantically. “Phil!”

“In the lower chamber, Herc! He couldn’t have-“ The crowd screamed, alerting Aseles with horrible tremors. All eyes shot back to the other side of the stadium, and walking toward the center platform was the same, male keyblade wielder they had ran into the Underworld. The sky rattled and darkened above him, and it consumed the entire sky in a dimly lit cauldron of Darkness. A gem electrocuted and powered from the base of his palm.

“Looks like we win, Erin!” the twin brother called out, the Darkness along his feet spraying and expanding across the ground. The exits were showered and blocked by black vines, and the stands of the stadiums began to cave downward, sinking into the dark pools. The horrid sound of screams filled the air, making Aseles shake her head of the sudden turn of events. Hundreds of hands filled the floor, but latched onto nothing as they sank into the tar-like substance.

“MEG!” Hercules shouted, and without a second thought ran to the pit of Darkness that once held the group’s seats, and dove.

“HERC!” Phil chased after, and soon they were both gone, now leaving the group to deal with the reunited twins on the stand. The group immediately backed up into the only haven of ground that was left, swords drawn out as Zack, Cloud and Auron swept their blades across the approaching pool to keep it at bay.

“Don’t you see what you’re doing!!?” Sora cried out angrily, panic driven of the mayhem unfolding around him. “Stop this now! The Darkness will swallow your heart!”

“AARON!” a ghastly cry sprang up, Aseles’ eyes bolting to the side to see the male with the gem fall down, and tossed into the nearest pool. The new figure beside the twin sister lashed out greatly, her cries of mourning distorting her motives now. Yet, she too met the same fate, her keyblade cut in half and her body kicked back into the pit behind her. She screamed in fitting flails, but the collapse of a column silenced her, and drove her deeper into her soundless sentence. A sharp weapon cut through the dropped gem, a dark-haired male retreating his keyblade. Aseles felt the sharp intake of air, and she wasn’t sure if it was the catastrophic events unfolding, the fact that the world was now being submerged in Darkness, or if it were the pair of hazel, storming eyes catching her.

His firm legs dashed to the group, Sora the first to greet him. The chains at the elder teen’s sides ringed once he stopped, the lean, metal keyblade still gripped in his hand. His brimming eyes solidified his toned stance further, and inspected Sora and the gang swiftly. He was dressed differently from everyone in the world. No...could it be-

“Who are you?” Sora questioned, his defensive nature now on full frontal.

“We can share names later, we have to go!” the male wielder shook his head. “This world is done for! We stay, we’re dead!” The sudden realization slapped Sora harshly, his keyblade trembling in hand.

“N-No! We can’t do that!” Sora announced, “The world, we have to save it!”

“How?! There’s nothing left!” the male cut in curtly, eyebrows knitted together. His eyes crossed the group once more, and then landed onto Aseles once more. She caught her breath, and almost fainted from how vivid his fogged orbs were. They almost...pleaded to her, to heed his warning, and when she took a look around to verify his statement....It all was true.

The Coliseum’s walls were crumbled, left in shambles of the heroic value it once displayed; the ground was breaking like glass, obscure veins encasing and integrated along a healthy heart of a world. The world was sick...the world was dying right in front of her...

“Sora!” Goofy cried, all bodies now threatening to be sunk inside the spreading poisoned floor.

“Let’s go!” Aseles shouted suddenly, “Everyone on the gummi ship!”

“What?!” Donald shouted in disbelief.

“We can’t do that!” Sora turned to look at her, but all anger was flushed once he looked to her.

Her tears streamed down, her keyblade flashing out of view out of plea, “Everyone and everything is gone, except for us...”

“W-We can fight-we can save-...” Sora inhaled sharply, his eyes coated with a shine.

“ _No_ , Sora.....”

Sora shook his head, “We c-can’t....it’s against the rules....”

“Sora....there’s _nothing_ left...” Aseles begged, her hand signaling to the destroyed and broken arena.

“I hate to impose, but she’s right,” the teen with hazel eyes interrupted. His eyes possessed Aseles again before looking back to Sora. “As keyblade wielders....we must rescue what we can.”

“Call the ship...Sora...” Donald breathed in shakily, his white clumps unsteady at his sides.

Sora’s eyes slid along the group, and one by one they all withdrew their weapons from their hands. Bella gripped onto Zack’s hand tightly, and her mentor nodded while looking to Cloud in acceptance.

“Sora...it’s the right thing to do,” Cloud stepped forward, a grim expression planted on his face. “We must leave to Radiant Garden.”

With teared eyes, Sora lifted his keyblade, and parting the polluted clouds was the hovering gummi ship. Its bottom hatch opened to lower the platform, everyone leaping onto safety before the ground broke in jagged pieces. Aseles gripped onto the edge as the gummi ship rose in haste, the hatch beginning to lift to close. Her eyes streamed of full tears, her lips firm and quivering at the mere sight of the entire world collapsing within itself. The town of Thebes was shrouded in ebony, all foundations torn and absorbed that once the gummi ship entered the void of space, all stood still on the dark globe of a world.

“The Olympus Coliseum...,” Goofy sniffed, sulking his head beside Aseles.

“It’s gone....” Auron lowered his tone. Aseles struggled to stand, but gave up and crawled to the nearest metal wall, and curled herself up into a ball. All was silent except the sound of controls being pressed, and the engine of the ship being played.

However, she stiffed when she felt someone kneeling down on one knee beside her. She expected it to be Sora, but she froze when she saw it was the elder, hazel-eyed teen.

“I’m sorry...” he whispered.


	17. A Sign

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Took this sooner out than usual, so hopefully it makes up for the inactivity the last couple of weeks. I didn't mention it in the last chapter, but I was stuck on some heavy care and medicine after coming back from the hospital. I feel a lot better, physically and emotionally, but thank you guys for all the support and love, I really appreciate it.
> 
> Our story here is moving along swimming, with new characters and foes coming along the way. You'll have to read to find out what happens to our fellow heroine.
> 
> Enjoy this chapter, I hope you're all having a great weekend <3
> 
> Sincerely,  
> -Keys~

What had become of what was now left?

The stars had lost a flicker of shine, nothing but an intrusion of spotlights that were too bright to see, harder to ignore. They shamed and cried as the group of silenced combatants posed no word, no measure or sign of hope. It was as if a black cauldron of despair and guilt flooded them, and pulled their hearts out only to drown and douse them with black acid again, again, and again….

Faces, all these faces Aseles could not bear to look at, but she knew that she had done the right thing; to order them onto the gummi ship, a retreat but a life-saving conclusion nonetheless. And yet, how heroic was it, deemed that they, the true wielders of the keyblade were the ones who brought the devastation they had barely escaped from. Hercules and Phil and Meg, the Olympus Coliseum, the hundreds of hands outstretched for a savior they could not grant them. How heroic were they, really?

Donald and Goofy only offered the occasional sniffle and wipe of an eye, with Bella and Zack sitting against the metal wall with Cloud resting his back alongside it. Auron had not sat, and looked out to the sky that Sora faced. The wielder was on his side, not muttering a word since they took off. Aseles herself had remained motionless, her mind racked in a spineless and hectic mess that was near impossible to rearrange. Her eyes shifted among the ground, her eyes pink from the constant crying she had hidden from everyone else…..everyone else, except the boy across from her.

His dark jacket hung over his shoulder, revealing the white shirt that stretched across his broad back. His toned arms were relaxed on his bent knees, a finger-less glove on his left hand with a black band around his right palm. His jeans were torn around the knees, and were tucked in a pair of black boots that met the center of his lower legs. His black hair swept in several directions, and did once more when his storming eyes caught Aseles yet again, for the fifth, the eleventh, and the twentieth time.

The landing in Radiant Garden was nauseating, Aseles barely able to feel her legs when the machine landed. Everyone walked down the slanted, budded walkway, the occasional murmur of check-ups going around. Aseles felt herself cold and lost in her home world, and rubbed her face roughly with both of her palms. It was approaching the early morning, with the sun not fully exposed to the horizon.

“That was stupid of you.” The entire group froze, and Aseles felt the harsh shiver of cold snare at her spine.

“What did you say?” Aseles clamped her teeth, looking at the approaching teen roll his eyes, furthering her anger.

“Did I stutter? Going after the twins…I had them, and you idiots decided to do the _right_ thing and confront him. He basically disappeared from Thebes, and I never found him again until an hour ago,” he suddenly announced, his lowered tone grazing Aseles’ skin like a rusted saw. She staggered forward, the whole group now in motion. Her body was snared around an arm, her hands clutching Cloud’s tucked hold.

“You have some nerve to talk like that right now!” Aseles couldn’t help but spit out, her tears threatening to come loose again. “If you knew what to do, why didn’t you do it sooner!?”

The teen tossed his worn jacket to the ground, “I was going to! I’ve been tailing those two damn kids for months now, and what do you do? You show up, with your little posse, and decide to do things your way.”

“Who are you to say what we did was wrong?!” Donald retorted, obviously outraged with Aseles.

“As a matter of fact,” Sora took the lead now, and now stood in front of Donald and Aseles protectively, a finger jabbed to the teen’s face. Sora was shorter than him, meeting the elder teen to his eyes with the top of his head, having to tilt his head up a bit to properly stare at him, “Who are you, and why do you have a keyblade?”

The male sighed, crossing his arms edgily on his chest, “The name’s Dimitri, the manner I got my keyblade is out of the question because, _really_ , I’m in no mood to share backstories around a bonfire.”

“Wait, months?” Zack pointed out, coming to stand beside Cloud who still held Aseles, “How long have you known about…those wielders?”

The young man, Dimitri ran his fingers loosely through his dark hair, “It doesn’t matter anymore. They’re dead now, along with the rest of the world thanks to these _four_.”

“Screw you!” Aseles jumped at the chance, but was not quick enough to swipe at Dimitri who stood idly by, looking to her expressionless. “If you had the whole thing under control, then none of this would’ve happened!”

This ignited a brown flare in Dimitri’s eyes, his jaw tightening, “You’re one to talk.”

“Leon…” Cloud drew out hastily. Aseles, Sora and Dimitri all straightened up, the group parting to an arc to face the approaching Leon and Cid. Leon’s face was paled, his chest exhaling whatever tension was building into him.

“You’re all okay,” Leon reminded himself, relieved. Though, his eyes bounced around the newcomers, mainly Dimitri, Zack, Bella, and Auron.

“Oh jeezes…” Cid pushed his hand to his eyes, his shoulders lowering with his free hand on his hip. “Now we’re in trouble.”

“Sora….what happened?” Leon redirected his attention, arms extended out for confirmation, an explanation. “We got your location on the radar that you were coming, and then Yen Sid-“

“Y-Yen Sid?” Sora swallowed, Donald and Goofy nervously looking to one another. Aseles felt the grappling hook crush her stomach, troubling her in her spot. She felt like she was going to vomit, and a spoon was mixing her knees together to throw her off-balance. The air grew dead silent, with Leon regarding anxiously to Sora, then to Aseles. She avoided his gaze, but when he called her name, she felt her words swimming to resurface on her tongue.

“Aseles….” Leon started, but he couldn’t finished.

She shook her head briefly, and took a step forward, “Leon-“ A sudden gust of wind swirled fenced the area, everyone ducking and covering their face from the violent gale. Aseles shivered in place, ducking her face in her arms when the winds subsided, because she recognized the booming, deep voice that followed after.

“Sora, Donald, Goofy, Aseles.” She swallowed heavily, shuddering in her stature while she picked up her head. Her eyes trembled to look past her bangs, and found herself standing beside Donald, who aligned himself with Sora and Goofy in a horizontal line. The robed sorcerer stood in front of the entire group, no one uttering a word from the intimidating glance of the powerful wizard.

Leon was the first to make a move, “Yen Sid-“

“Squall, if you please,” Yen Sid lifted a hand, automatically muzzling him. Leon bit the inside of his mouth, and stepped aside, his eyes shifting among the line. Yen Sid advanced, and stood a yard away, his eyes now examining the group behind the four, “Visitors of another world…that do not belong here. And among them….a keyblade wielder, nonetheless.” Dimitri remained in his posture, his hand turning into an apprehensive fist. Yen Sid studied him a moment more, then drifted his view to the group. At first, no one said anything until Donald could no longer take the silence.

“Olympus fell into Darkness....we couldn’t stop it-I can explain-” Donald tried, but a lift of Yen Sid’s interrupted him.

“As keybearers, you mustn’t intervene in what is not yours...no matter the cost. It is a rule to not meddle in the affairs of other worlds;  you were not obligated to save these individuals. I do not blame your moral bounds...but you have violated a principle that has been held for any generations,” Yen Sid cleared his throat. “There is no time to waste; we have a mission to fulfill. It is time for the Mark of Mastery in order to declare disapproval of this war.”

“Right now?” Sora inhaled shakily after, his eyes looking to Aseles then back to Yen Sid. “Yen Sid, I’m not sure if-“

“But not you, Sora.” The thick syrup in Aseles’ veins stopped all process, breath and thought, and she had to clutch her chest to make her move. Donald and Goofy shared a hasty glance, all eyes laid on Sora now.

Sora’s eyes widened, “W-What?”

“You violated a principle, and as a Keybearer you are bound to the consequence of your action. You will not take the Mark of Mastery.” A rupture rippled and cracked underneath Aseles guard, and she felt herself heavily conflicted of Yen Sid’s accusation. But if she thought about it, they were all under Sora, to follow him wherever he went and abide by whatever choice he thought was correct. She knew leading their friends out of the world…it was a serious offense, but not at the cost of something highly important such as a Mark of Mastery. She felt her teeth clamp on top of each other, trying to prevent the loose cannon that rumbled at the base of her feet.

If it came down to knowing who was the one to save everyone, who was the key to everyone’s heart….she knew it wasn’t her to begin with.

“No!” Aseles staggered forward, her arms juddering from her sudden rush. She shook her head, and almost forgot to breath when Yen Sid laid his eyes onto her own. Sora, Donald and Goofy stiffened in place.

“A-Aseles,” Sora gripped her arm.

“I must ask you to-“ Yen Sid started.

“It was my idea to bring them back here. Sora had nothing to do with it, I pushed my friends to listen to me,” Aseles fumbled with her words, her jumping throat hooking around her comprehensive vocabulary.

“Aseles,” Sora pleaded, “What are you doing?”

“I’m telling him the truth,” Aseles boldly confessed, her eyes demanding Sora to keep quiet. She locked eyes back to Yen Sid’s, “If you’re going to banish someone from taking the test…banish me.” Yen Sid’s eyes hardened, and from the corner of her eye she saw Leon attempt to make a move, but was held by hastily by Cid.

“Are you trying to save face, Aseles?” Yen Sid interrogated, hands locked together that the ends of his sleeves united as one, “How do I know you’re telling me the truth?”

“She is.” A body moved forward, and already Aseles immobilized all fists from swinging around to hit Dimitri. The teen cleared his throat, “She was the one who insisted to leave.”

“That’s not fair!” Bella instantly retorted, jabbing a finger with Zack too late to withdraw her.

“Bella, not now!” he whispered urgently.

“He’s the one that came up with the idea to leave!” Bella continued without a beat.

“An idea she could have refused, and not listen to,” Dimitri cut back, inflaming Aseles’ patience.

“I’m right here, stop talking like I wasn’t present!” Aseles glared, the two now igniting a war between their eyes.

“Enough!” Yen Sid’s bellowed plentiful to silence the crew. Aseles bit her tongue, but turned to face the wizard again, inhaling shakily with his eyes solely on her now. “I must judge your decision on bringing these foreign units to a new world without authorization: Aseles, you are hereby disqualified from taking the Mark of Mastery. Do I make myself clear?”

Aseles stayed silent, her eyes quickly dropping to look at the tips of her boots. She bit her lip to suppress any outrage or emotion, and knowing everyone was looking at her made it worse. She wanted to leave, to hide under her bedsheets until the spiders trapped her into cobwebs. She wasn’t…ridiculed…she was ashamed. She felt ashamed.

“Do I make myself _clear_?” Yen Sid probed, making the brunette flinch.

“…Y-Yes, Master Yen Sid.”

“Sora, we must leave at once. Donald and Goofy are welcomed to accompany you if they wish.”

“….But…”

“ _Now,_ Sora.” Yen Sid’s footsteps began to depart, relocating himself to a secluded area of the large basin of ground. No one motioned forward until Sora leisurely walked to stand in front of Aseles. He reached forward, unable to unclasp his fingers from digging into the straps of her shirt.

“A-Aseles, why did you-“ he breathed hesitation.

“Go, Sora. He’s waiting for you,” Aseles did not lift her head, raising her shoulders to aid her in her hunched stature.

“I…I can’t leave you…not like this-“

“SORA.” Yen Sid called out, Sora jumping at the command.

“Take him,” Aseles redirected her head to Donald, who all but could only stare in a melancholy glance. He nodded however, and his hand gripped Sora’s wrist.

Sora did not budge, “No, I can’t! We were supposed to do this together, all three of us!”

“Sora, she can’t go,” Donald battled, and motioned Goofy to help him. The guard sighed in disappointment, but gripped onto Sora’s other wrist, and the two began to tug Sora away.

“No, no no!” Sora retaliated. “We can’t! We can’t leave Aseles!”

“We have to go, Sora!” Donald argued, avoiding looking back as he and Goofy continued to pull him. When Aseles finally looked up, she saw Sora had stopped fighting, and stood facing to her direction with his back to Yen Sid. The powerful sorcerer lifted his hand over Sora’s head, with both Donald and Goofy looking to him.

“Aseles…” Sora mouthed, and the tears at her eyes finally unleashed, and dripped over her cheeks to connect underneath her jaw. She lifted a hand, but it dropped in dead weight when she saw the magical force field encase her trio. The last thing she saw was Sora’s conflicted expression, his eyes withdraw and pulled in a way she had never thought she would see. Then, they were gone, and she stood in the middle of the arc, her trembling back facing everyone else.

“Aseles- Aseles wait!” Leon’s voice grew distant, Aseles’ running footsteps leading her to the long staircase leading up to the Market Place, but she didn’t stop there. She ducked and weaved around the morning crowd like a clumsy dancer, crashing into corner of a building and scraping her upper arm and bumping into an unsuspected buyer against his side. She ignored the call out, her tears spilling over the edges of her eyes. They flew off of her skin like raindrops, making her afraid that she was leaving a trail behind. She didn’t want anyone to see her so broken.

The Bailey and Postern were all a blur of colors, and she finally came to grips when she hit the floor of Ansem’s Study. Only then did the outpour of her sadness spill, her hands and legs trembling as they helped her crawl across the carpeted floor. She pushed the chair of the desk aggressively away, tossing it to its side that one of the bottom wheels spun. She ducked her head underneath the open compartment of the desk, squeezing herself into the tightest ball she could muster to stop her pieces from breaking apart. She morphed her face and head against the front of her knees, and unleashed all the sobs she had tried to stifle since the departure of Olympus.

The world was gone, it was gone. Hercules, Phil and Meg. They were gone too. Thebes was gone. The indignity of Yen Sid lecturing and punishing her in front of all those people…it was the worst feeling in the world. And she cried. And she cried….and she cried…

“Aseles…” she lifted her head, her hair an absolute mess of hay along her face. Her eyes shined red even underneath the wood she tried to carve herself into. She wasn’t ready to come out yet.

But Axel stay in place, his hand reaching to hold her knee, “Aseles…”

“I-I don’t know what to do!” Aseles sobbed, smashing her hands against her face, “I don’t know what to do!” She was yanked this time, and she felt her arms snare around Axel’s chest, her face burying into the man’s dark shirt. Axel shifted his legs beneath himself, but held her close with the side of his face pressed against the top of her bunched up locks. His arms trapped her into his being, almost trying to make her heartbeat his own.

“It’s going to be fine. It’s going to be fine,” Axel reassured, inhaling deeply. “Cry. Just cry it out.”

“I don’t know what to do….I don’t know what to do…” Aseles sniffled out, trembling in her curled position.

“It’s going to be okay, Aseles. Everything is going to be okay,” Axel comforted, “Go to sleep. Go to sleep so you can forget for a bit. Aseles…

 

Aseles….

 

Go to sleep.

 

Go to sleep to forget

 

_Even for a bit._

 

_Sleep._

 

_Just…_

 

 

_Sleep…_

 

??? POV:

 

“Oh dear, oh dear. You have caused some trouble, boy.”

The cloaked figure approached, raised his sword with both hands and placed it on top of the metal table before the elder man. The senior grinned maliciously, and nodded in appraisal. He mounted off from his cushioned seat of velvet maroon, and collected his arms to rest on top of each other behind his hunched back.

“Excellent work.”

“Didn’t do it alone; the twins executed what they needed to do, and paid the price. Just like you wanted them to.”

“Couldn’t get the girl?”

The figure scoffed, gripping the back of his concealed fabric and tugged it off roughly, “Could hardly breathe in this thing; obviously too tight.”

“The girl escaped?” the bearded man constricted his eyes.

“The blasted rouge, he got in my way before I could do the job,” the experienced fighter crossed his arms, pressing the bottom of his foot against the side of the table’s base. “Any news?”

This made the senior chuckle in mirth, “You did what you were asked to do, the girl is of no concern at the moment. She was prohibited from taking he Mark of Mastery. The dear, poor girl was torn, cried herself to sleep I’m sure.”

“What a baby. I’ll give her something to cry about later.”

“In due time. We must move our resources to the next phase. Are you ready, boy?”

Chad chuckled, and extended his arm out to swipe it gradually toward the metal door yards away, “After you, Master.”

 

ASELES’ POV, THE NEXT DAY:

 

She sat up groggily, groaning from the massive headache holding her. She was alarmed of the soft cushion of her bed beneath her, but then remembered the flash of red hair in her memory bank; Axel dropped her here last night. She had slept for nearly the entire day, the brief memory of Axel bringing her something to eat in the evening and leaving her alone for the rest of the night.

“Ugh…my head…” Aseles grumbled, running her fingers roughly across her cheeks and face. She looked at the clock, bearing the hands to indicate it was eight in the morning. She wondered if Sora-….OH….right. They left.

“…..Crap..” Aseles frowned, rubbing off her dried tears. A knock on the door sounded along her room’s walls, and she debated whether she should pretend to be sleeping. But the sound of a familiar sigh identified who it was, and she gave, “Come in.” Leon stepped in to close the door securely behind him. Aseles sat up straighter, the best that she could, watching Leon sit on the edge and end of her bed. His hands cupped his knees, a hand rubbing the side of his head. His back stretched underneath his white shirt, Aseles surprised to find him glove-less and jacket-less. He looked like he had barely woken up with his tussled bangs.

“How are you feeling?” Leon asked first.

She yawned momentarily, rubbing her eye, “I feel fine..” Silence draped gently, coating Aseles safely alongside Leon. Her legs hung over the side of the bed, her hands timidly pulling and stretching on her sheets. She personally didn’t know what Leon was thinking about, and felt angered that he was dismissed so easily by Yen Sid.

“Do you know where…my other friends are?” she carefully brought on.

“Cloud took them to Merlin’s Study, and are being taken care of in the U.S.S. We’re trying to find them a place to stay in the town,” Leon replied back.

“Oh….” Aseles nodded.

Leon responded after a few moments, “Aseles, I want you to know that what you did was the right thing, of saving your friends.”

“I know Sora would’ve done the same thing…I was just the one who reacted first,” Aseles replied, looking over to him.

“This…Mark of Mastery…was it essential?” Leon started.

“It…sounds like it, but I don’t know,” Aseles shrugged, exhaling softly. “Better to have Sora take it, than someone like me.”

“Don’t talk about yourself that way,” Leon countered, shaking his head.

“I’m talking honestly, Leon-“

“So am I,” Leon interrupted, “Aseles…I want you to know that I’m proud of you.”

Aseles quirked her mouth, rubbing her arm, “Because of what I did?”

Leon shook his head, scooting himself closer, “No…Aseles.” He reached, his hand gripping onto hers, “I’ve always been proud of you. Back then, right now, and with whatever we’re going to face together. Things don’t seem clear, or bright, but know Aseles that you’re not alone to face the obstacles.” She didn’t know how to argue back, but also…found no reason to. His words were genuine, and she respected he was looking after her like they were actually family.

She accepted it, and gathered her words, “Leon…thank you…Thank you for everything, for being my friend, for being my……” She inhaled, and looked over to the patient Leon, “For being….a dad.”

Leon smiled at this, and he reached forward, placing his hand on her head with the same gesture as always, “Always, Aseles.”

After his departure, and promise to see him in the U.S.S., Aseles showered and changed to a clean t-shirt and pair of rolled-up pants, advised that her usual attire was being washed. Agreeing that it might be too soon to put the fight gear back on, she slipped on some old sneakers Yuffie had lent her, and started making a quick sandwich to take on the way. She wrapped it in a napkin, and moved her way to exit…until she heard the sound of an opening door. She paused, narrowing her eyes down the hallway that rested behind the stairs. Kairi must still be asleep from the loud creak of a moving bed. Riku’s room was empty, she suspected, which left the last two rooms upstairs (Raine sleeping in one of them). The small thud of footsteps reached the top stair, and when Aseles craned her neck to see who it was, she was most displeased: it was freaking Dimitri.

Jeezes she slept in the same building as that jerkface.

“No good morning?” he asked as he walked down the stairs. Aseles turned on her heels and made her way out the door. Once Dimitri arrived at the bottom stair, she slammed the door closed, and was tempted to lock him in there with her ke-……….he had one too, she completely forgot.

“Uggggh,” Aseles groaned, angrily munching on her sandwich as she made her way through the Borough. The sound of an opening and closing door was heard after several yards away, and she looked back to see if Dimitri was following. To her dismay, he was; did Leon invite him too? Certainly not with the same fatherly peptalk he gave her earlier.

“Thanks for slamming the door on my face,” the same bothersome voice echoed out to her. Aseles chewed on her sandwich instead, muttering incoherently to herself to ignore him. She made her way up the stairs headed to the Bailey-

“You’re being awfully rude.” Aseles whirled from the midstep of the stairs, glowering at Dimitri at the bottom. “You could fall off the ledge, if you took another step back.”

“Yor sut an ahhhole!” Aseles muttered out with mouth full, wanting to throw the remains of her sandwich down at him.

Dimitri stared flatly at her, “…It’s not polite to talk with your mouth full-“

“MNNNN!!” Aseles stormed up the rest of the steps, and entered the Bailey and out with haste. It wasn’t long when she opened the door leading into the U.S.S., and had cooled down _slightly_ from her encounter with the brash idiot. Inside, her thoughts relaxed, watching Bella spinning in one of the chairs of the desk while Zack and Cloud spoke with ease with the quiet Auron beside. Aseles looked over to see Leon stationed near the computer with Cid, accompanied by Axel and Yuffie.

“Hey,” Axel waved over, Aseles waving back. The ones around the table looked to her, and she made her way over, sitting beside Bella.

“You guys okay?” she started. Zack was about to answer, but Bella cut to the chase.

“Us, we should be asking about you,” she frowned, crossing her arms.

Aseles sighed, preventing herself from looking in another other direction, “It’s fine, don’t worry about it.”

“Not worry  about it? It sounded like something really important,” Zack’s demeanor dropped. Aseles suddenly remembered the pain she had on her shoulder from the day before; she needed to ask Leon about it, later at night maybe if she had time.

“At least Yen Sid didn’t have the idea of sending you back,” Cloud added in, making Aseles agree.

Bella shook her head, and nodded when Zack leaned over his pupil’s shoulder, “Thank you, Aseles. Without you or your friends, we would’ve been done for.”

“Just hope…Hercules, and the others are alright,” Bella rubbed her eyes, sighed heavily.

“They’ll be fine,” Auron added calmly.

“Yeah. A hero like Hercules? They can stand against anything,” Aseles smiled, trying her best to think of hopeful thoughts. The metal door of the room opened, and closed with a small thud. Aseles refused to turn around, already knowing who it was from the way Bella stared over her shoulder.

“I really want to punch him,” Bella whispered.

“Don’t get any rash ideas,” Zack warned, spinning her chair around so she didn’t have to look at Dimitri approaching. Aseles looked over, seeing Leon approaching Dimitri, the two sharing a brief talk before Dimitri began to head in their general direction.

“I advise you to not sit there,” Cloud announced clearly, making Dimitri’s hand halt at the head of the chair beside Aseles.

“Why not?” Dimitri asked, making Aseles huff out.

“Unless you want to walk around with a black eye,” Cloud finished. “And it won’t be from me.” Dimitri’s hand lifted, and he instead made his way around the table, and sat right across from Aseles. She eased her posture though, and gave Cloud a thoughtful nod of thanks.

“Gather around, everyone,” Leon called out, Aseles feeling more thankful when she saw Axel take the empty seat beside her. Yuffie and Cid took their spots, all eyes somewhat wary to Dimitri. Leon looked to be the only one who accepted Dimitri being in the room, and turned his chair slightly over toward the dark-haired youth.

“We need to know who you are, and what you were doing in Olympus,” Leon started, “It’s a high coincidence you were there when the world collapsed, as informed by Cloud.” Gosh, Aseles really wished she could hug Cloud right now.

Dimitri sighed in cut exasperation, but laid back in his chair, arms crossed, “Fine. My name is Dimitri, and I’m a keyblade wielder, like Boots over there.” Boots. Her nickname was Boots now? If only she had them on so she could drive one up his a-

“A keyblade wielder. Can you show us?” Leon pressured.

“I’m…not the sharing type,” Dimitri actually hesitated, his lips locking to a firm, pressed line.

“You don’t have a choice right now.” Dimitri groaned in defeat, but lifted his hand, and the group waited. It took a moment, but Dimitri’s hand was suspiciously and suddenly swallowed in a dark shadow, dark wisps cradling and encasing his arm and digits like forming snakes. Unlike Aseles’, the keyblade was accompanied by a hazy fog releasing out once the entire body was formed. The handle was angular in shape, the connecting beam between the neck and handle wrapped in dark cloth. The neck was slick in dark silver, and the head was curved to form a sharp tip at the very end of the keyblade. Five half-bladed tips protruded out of the arced metal.

“A wielder of Darkness,” Yuffie pointed out, weary of the boy’s intentions already.

“You say that, and yet you had one here yesterday. The silver-haired one before he left,” Dimitri abruptly pointed out, leaving his keyblade on the table now for Leon to inspect properly.

Aseles sighed to herself; so Merlin already took Riku. She should’ve asked how Raine was doing before she knocked out. But she was bound to see her later with Kairi most likely.

Leon looked to Dimitri again, “How did you get to Olympus then?”

“Are we really going to do this-“

“Yes,” Leon solidified, making Dimitri scoff. Everyone waited patiently for him to continue.

“I’m actually from Thebes,” Dimitri admitted, making Aseles stare incredulously to him. “I got the keyblade months ago, I guess. I don’t know. When you have the Lord of the Underworld causing havoc in your city, you better be damned prepared to fight for your life. After Hades disappeared, this guy in a black cloak approached me, and he knocked me out before I could even react. When I woke up-“ Dimitri nodded expressionless to his keyblade- “that was in my hand.”

“Sounds too good to be true,” Yuffie couldn’t help but point out.

Dimitri rolled his eyes in her direction, “I’m not here to make friends, much less care if you trust me or not.”

“Then, what is it that you want?” Leon interrogated further.

“…I want to bring Olympus back,” Dimitri drew out slowly, his shoulders tensing. Aseles relaxed her posture, at least knowing he had some….redeeming quality to him. Maybe…that’s why he was being such an asshole. Why else would he get mad if a group of travelers came to submerge it into Darkness. He must have had friends, a family, but even if he didn’t…it was his home.

“That’s one of our shared goals then,” Leon confirmed, straightening up in his seat.

“I was suspecting that those….want-to-be wielders were nothing but trouble, and I had planned an attack on them weeks ago. But then I saw Boots and her team in the city and around Olympus, and only then did I see the twins yesterday.”

“My name is Aseles,” she retorted.

“Yeah, whatever Boots.”

“Aseles, hold on, okay?” Leon lifted a hand, easing her stressed annoyance. He glanced to Dimitri again, “We’re truly sorry for your loss; we in the Hollow Bastion Committee have all lost something to the power of Darkness, and we make it our job to protect our world and others from meeting the same fate again. If there’s anything you need, or something vital that you need to address, you can talk to us. Is that clear?”

Dimitri took a moment, contemplating with eyes hardened to the keyblade on the table, “Then I need to be in the loop, to know what we’re going to be dealing with. You made it sound like it’s a problem every world is facing.” No hesitation to even reconsider his positioning with Leon and the gang; he was definitely much more confident in his choices.

“The fake wielders go by the name of Substitutes, but we’re not sure what their main goal is.”

“Are you saying enslaving a world into Darkness was not it?” Dimitri roughly cut in.

Leon shook his head, “We’re not sure.”

Dimitri was immediately bothered by the answer, “Great. Perfect.”

“That is why a revisit to the other world is necessary, to make sure no other world meets the same fate, which is why I’m addressing this meeting. I want the Committee to split into teams, and each one will be tasked to recon their given world for any clues or indications of the Substitutions.”

“Leon, don’t you think that’s…kind of risky?” Yuffie gestured with an open hand, her elbow resting on the tabletop, “What if something happens here, and we can’t make it back in time?”

“That’s….a pretty good question,” Axel agreed, drumming his slender fingers. “Why not wait for Sora and the others to come back?”

Leon’s face turned to light granite, “Sora, Donald, Goofy and Riku won’t be back anytime soon; this is too essential to wait on.”

“…For how long?” Aseles couldn’t help but ask.

Leon met her gaze, trying his best to not frown, “Weeks…months. Merlin was…unsure to give me a specific date.” Aseles looked away, fiddling with her fingers on the table. If they were going to take that long, there was no way they would pick up pace against the Substitutions. Sora would want to…she knew he would, and at the rate this was going, it would roll downhill fast.

“We’ll think of something else, then,” Yuffie insisted.

“I’ll do it.” Leon and the others shot their gaze to Aseles who still kept her gaze downward.

“Kid, that’s a big job,” Axel tilted his head, nudging her gently with his shoulder. “Are you sure you’re up for-“

“I’ll go with you.” Oh dear..gracious why.

The moment she heard his mouth open, she quickly retaliated Dimitri’s statement, “No, no way.”

“Look, I know we don’t….freaking get along, but I’m going, and that’s that.”

“Leon, he can’t be serious,” Aseles argued while bolting to her feet, glaring over to the standing Dimitri.

Leon rubbed the bridge of his nose, resisting the urge to sigh, “Aseles, it may not look….ideal, but Dimitri at least has experience with his keyblade.”

“Can’t say the same thing about his attitude,” Aseles sneered, crossing her arms and pointed her stare directly at him.

The hazel-eyed male fumed, the edges of his ears firing up, “At least my combat skills can actually steer a fight rather than worsen it.”

“What did you say!?”

“Did I stutter, Boots?!”

“ENOUGH!” Leon slammed his hands against the table, halting all discussion with a firm stare. “This is not the time to start acting like children, and if you continue any further, I’m going to start treating you both like one. Am I clear??” Aseles and Dimitri clutched each other’s glower with vice and vigor, Aseles already feeling the hauntingly and rabid electricity igniting her instincts to punch him square in the nose. However, her daughter identity warned her, and she found herself plopping in her seat.

“Dimitri, sit down,” Leon demanded, and he too gave into the fatherly call. He took his time though, and adjusted his seat properly before leaning against it and resting his clamping palms at the arms. He was probably imagining each of them being Aseles limbs.

“Well, why can’t we go?” Bella inquired, catching Leon’s attention.

Zack beat him to the punch, “No, no way.”

“What? Why?!”

“We’re already on the watch-list. We’ve caused enough trouble as it is, especially for Aseles,” Zack informed, making his novice frown.

“We’ll discuss it later,” Leon grumbled, rubbing his forehead in languid circles, “For now, we need to evaluate our plans, the newcomers, and show Dimitri around the town later when there’s less activity. Any questions, suggestions?”

The training session docked at the expansive landscape of the Maw. As they passed the Crystal Fissure, Aseles made sure ignore her hidden hideout, already indicating it as the place to run away from Dimitri rather than deal with his dirty antics to piss her off. His intentions might ring true, but it was not enough for her to put up with his vulgar attitude. She sided with Raine instead, and filled Kairi in whatever she missed when they arrived with Aerith.

The redhead was well-informed of the events that transpired at Olympus, and Sora and Riku, but Aseles already knew she was trying to cheer her up from Yen Sid’s delivered punishment. Aseles noticed no one was bringing it up whenever she was present, the first time only moments prior at the table with Zack even if it was brief. Truthfully, she was comfortable with Leon about it, but a tentative manifestation planted into everyone else to keep themselves from bringing it up.

“Whatever it takes, we’ll help you anyway we can,” Kairi genuinely responded, brushing Aseles back as they continued their way down the slope of lavender dirt.

“Thanks,” Aseles considered the statement between pity and genuine reassurance, but she knew better than to doubt Kairi. “How are you doing, Raine? Kairi’s told me that you feel better?”

“Oh, um, yeah,” Raine fumbled with her footing, careful to not trip over the round stones in her way. “A bit better, but it’s something.” They made their footing to the base, Leon and Yuffie taking the lead. Bella, Zack and Auron strode ahead of Aseles’ group, with Axel and Aerith at the very back while maintaining Dimitri a distance  in between.

Kairi looked over her shoulder, but quickly looked ahead again, “He’s weird.”

“What else is new?” Aseles pointed out, already knowing who Kairi was referring to.

“And Leon trusted him right off the bat?”

“He tolerates him more than the rest of us, I think,” Aseles corrected with a quirked mouth.

“Hmm…he looks bothered,” Raine added next, moping visibly.  

“I think he was born that way,” Aseles mumbled with a more profound motion in her step.

“He recently lost his home, didn’t he?”

“Hmm…yeah that’s true,” Kairi nodded, tapping her chin with a finger.

“Maybe that’s his way of….coping with it,” Raine indicated, and Aseles wanted to combat against her word. But, it was true, it could be true. He had stammered to show them his keyblade, and wasn’t so keen on sharing his backstory until it was commanded; he was not open to strangers, and yet…the way he trusted Leon for his every word was astounding, really. Could it be he was after vengeance rather than saving the worlds with good intentions? Was that why he harbored Darkness, because of the way he kept himself excluded from everyone else?

“How the heck are we going to know if he keeps behaving like a jerk,” Aseles confirmed rather than asked. This received a soft exhale from Raine, and the three didn’t press the matter further.

Leon gained the attention of the group, “To know your strengths, we’ll evaluate with how you match against Axel, Aseles, Raine and Dimitri.”

“So why are the rest of them here?” Yuffie indicated to Auron, Zack and Bella.

“Always love to see a good fight,” Bella gave a thumbs up, and whispered after, “And see Dimitri get his face kicked in.”

Zack nudged her, shaking her shoulders with his clamped hands, “What Bella means to say is she’ll watch carefully to better her own skills. Isn’t that right??”

Yuffie rested a fist on her hip, eyeing Zack carefully, “Uh huh…”

“To start us off, Aseles will demonstrate. Aseles,” Leon signaled for Axel to get ready. “Aerith will be on stand-by with potions and ethers if needed.”

Aseles stepped up with keyblade in hand, facing Axel a few yards away with legs spread in her stance. Axel leaned a bit back in posture, spindling his chakrams in his hands. At the edge of her sight, the group watched fixedly, but no other stare spiked and rattled her more than Dimitri’s.

“If you don’t pay attention, you won’t beat me that easily,” Axel called out, locking his feet to the ground. Aseles said nothing, and stayed grounded when Axel’s spiked disks shot out, making her keyblade shake in her grip. They rolled and flew back to Axel’s hands, and the two met with a quick strike.

The harsh, friendly-fire clanged and nerved the atmosphere, creating sparks between the worthy fighters. Axel dodged and rammed his disks downward, Aseles catching them over her head. A ring of fire began to swarm around Aseles, but she combated with a lightning strike, throwing Axel off of her. The match was evened out, Axel chuckling after and ruffling Aseles’ hair of a job well done.

Raine was next, but her fighting style was clearly outmatched with Axel’s stamina and power; several occasions she ran off to a safe distance to face him, and flinched when Axel delivered a powerful blow. However, despite her great disadvantage, she continued the match, and Axel was glad to deliver whatever encouragement for her continuous battle.

“Dimitri, you’re up.” The teen walked forward, striding confidently past Raine who cowered faintly when he passed her. She found her place between Aseles and Kairi, the whole row now watching as Axel made it to the field after receiving a potion from Aerith.

“This outta be good,” Bella hummed out thoughtfully, Aseles looking to her before facing forward again. The dark keyblade formed into Dimitri’s control, the dark-haired combatant scanning Axel’s stance.

“You don’t mind if I go a little rough on you, do you?” Axel called out, chakrams ready in hand.

“Whatever makes you feel better, redhead,” Dimitri kept his stance straight, his feet only partially spread with arms out. His keyblade rested vertically in front of him, sparking Aseles’ interest.

“Whenever you’re ready!” Yuffie ordered out while Leon held his notebook and pen out in hand.

“Sure thing,” Axel mouthed, and sprinted to Dimitri’s direction. Dimitri remained still, and it was only until Axel was in close range that he made a move; he withdrew his keyblade, and cut it forward, piercing through Axel’s stance. The redhead dodged to the side, but Dimitri had anticipated it, and sent a flying kick to Axel’s side, making the man stumble back.

“Why you-“ Axel crossed his chakrams forward, deflecting the downward strike of Dimitri’s keyblade.

“Oh gosh,” Kairi exhaled sharply.

“He’s fast,” Zack narrowed his eyes.

The plummet of deflects increased gradually, Axel swinging his rounded beasts around to cut through Dimitri’s barrier. The teen gave him no options, and Axel roared out a ring of fire. Aseles expected Dimitri to dodge, but the teen held his ground, and slashed his keyblade upwards. A wave of dark flames dispersed the onslaught, and in turn shot a chakram out of Axel’s hand.

“You’ve got to be kidding me,” Aseles clenched her teeth. Axel recovered quickly, bringing his tossed weapon like a yo-yo, dodging the perfectly straight cuts and thrusts of Dimitri’s technique. It was obvious he had much practice fighting, but maybe a bit too much than anyone had anticipated; he was not new to the keyblade.

“That’s enough,” Leon called out. Dimitri swiftly recalled his keyblade, leaving him bare and unprotected. Axel on the other hand kept his chakrams in hands, his eyes locked onto Dimitri for a moment before relinquishing his guarded demeanor.

“The kid’s good,” Yuffie gripped her hips with an impressed nod.

“It fairs us in the long run,” Leon added in while Aseles listened to their conversation past everyone else’s. “We’ll do more trial runs later, I just wanted to get a feel for who they could work with.”

Aseles looked over, catching Axel heading over to Aerith to ask for an ether. She did so, but the view was suddenly cut with Dimitri coming into her frame, and making her clasp at his glance. His invading eyes quaked with interest, and his smug, faint smirk made her draw her eyebrows together of his obnoxious nature. Something was itching her about him, like some sort of insect crawling in her head and her unable to scratch it.

“Let’s go again, this time with teams!”

RIKU’S POV:

He wasn’t able to ponder on the thought of why he was brought here so suddenly, and why Aseles wasn’t here, but a hunched and withdrawn Sora told him otherwise. He didn’t want to ask him, and instead asked Goofy despite knowing Yen Sid had an ear in every part of his tower. Frankly, what Goofy told him wasn’t all that he wanted to hear.

He already knew of the fate of Olympus, of the new keybearer brought to them, of the visitors that did not belong there, but no one had informed him Aseles was banned from taking the Mark of Mastery from Yen Sid himself. No, this was wrong, this was all wrong. Now no one was there to watch her, except for Leon and Axel who were the only people she truly confided in. He had to write to Leon, to tell him that she couldn’t go anywhere, she mustn’t travel on her own; it was too risky to attract danger.

“Is something the matter?” Goofy asked.

Riku shook his head, “Where’s Sora, I need to talk to him.” Goofy explained he was in the changing room, where the Fairy Godmothers were. Riku made his way up the stairs and over, quite glad Yen Sid was not here to stop him. He hurried to the doors and knocked, but didn’t bother to wait for Sora to answer. He closed the door quickly behind him, and found Sora sitting near the window, his arms resting on the windowsill and his head laying on top of them. He was dressed and prepped, ready to take the test. Riku frowned, but attempted to even it out with a firm line. He walked over, and sat next to Sora, facing the opposite wall.

“Sora…are you alright?” Riku started out. When he received no answer, he looked over to see his best friend had lifted his face, and looked out to the starry sky outside.

“I’ve never…doubted anyone. I never stopped believing in you Riku, even though the Darkness took you. I knew, that somehow and someway you would come back. That you were always my friend….” Sora breathed out.

“Sora?” Riku swallowed.

“But now…” Sora shook his head, and he sat up properly, hands extended out in front of him, “why do I feel like I can’t trust this? That I can’t…trust what’s happening right now? Why…why don’t I trust Yen Sid with what he did?”

“Sora…” Riku started, afraid to say anything to jeopardize Sora’s presence here. “Aseles…did what had to be done, but if she feels that she did the right thing, that’s all we-“

“I would’ve done the same thing!” Sora countered, bolting to his feet.

Riku followed suite, and he gripped Sora’s upper arms to keep him in place, “All we can do now is take this test, okay? Don’t ruin the chance to take it!”

“Without Aseles?” Sora argued back, his jaw tightening the further they talked, “Even though she’s faced everything with us?!”

“If she were here Sora, she would’ve wanted for you to take the test, without her or not. That’s why you’re here, Sora! Don’t….don’t disappoint her.”

Sora stilled, but dropped his weight, Riku letting go of his arms, “It’s just….I wanted her to be here….”

“As did I, Sora.” The brunette lifted his stare, looking to Riku’s cold and piercing eyes, “I wanted her to be here…more than anything.”

“Why do I feel…that this isn’t the right thing to do?”

Riku exhaled sharply, his eyes creeping up to the window, and out into the sky, “Because…Sora. You’re probably right.”

“She’ll be fine, right?” Sora questioned, and patted his friend’s arm when Riku did not respond immediately.

“I hope so, Sora,” his bright orbs met Sora’s. “I really do.”

ASELES’ POV, LATER:

The training was dismissed an hour ago, but she still felt the raw pulse of her muscles. She winced slightly at the thought of the next morning, knowing she was going to need a warm shower tonight. She ate in the kitchen, having bid Kairi and Raine goodbye after they left to go meet up with Aerith at the Market Place; she was really glad to see Raine make a good friend while she was away. It reassured her that things were changing. The same was questionable with Dimitri.

After the dismissal, she noticed Dimitri take great interest in helping Leon out, and was lent over to Axel to watch. Axel tolerated the task, and the two set off to show Dimitri the rest of the town. His last glance left Aseles chewing angrily after asking her if she wanted to tag along. Pfht, as if.

A knock on the door reeled her back to present time, “Come in.”

The familiar thuds of feet walked in, Aseles picking up her glance to see it was Leon, “Thought you went with Axel and Dimitri. You’re here all by yourself?”

“Uh, yeah, just thinking,” Aseles hummed, shrugging while taking her last bites. “Didn’t feel like it.”

“Hm….” Leon took the seat beside her, “Not fond of him, are you?”

“I….don’t like his brash attitude, that’s all,” Aseles bit on her fork, dispelling all her stress onto it.

“It’s understandable,” Leon nodded, “He’s unlike any of us here, but he did agree to go with you.”

“UGH, are we really bringing this up?” Aseles groaned, moving her plate aside with her used fork on top of it now. Last thing she wanted was to get a checkup on her damaged teeth if she left it in for too long.

Leon took a moment, crossing his arms on top of the table, “Even though it might not seem fitting, but he’s willing to help us without a second thought. He could have said no, but he acknowledges what he lost, and wants to redeem himself.”

“What if he’s doing it with selfish intentions?” Aseles cut in, glaring to him.

Leon looked over to her directly, “Didn’t you start out that way?” Aseles couldn’t hold her angered expression, and swiftly looked aside, feeling the burning of her cheeks. Jeezes, out of all the time of being right…

“I guess….you have a point,” Aseles mumbled irately, resisting to roll her eyes.

“But, in order to do that, we need to see if you’re compatible with him on the battlefield. He may be of great help, but your safety comes first.”

She blushed again, but for a different reason, “…Right…Sorry, Leon. After what happened yesterday, I’m just…”

“Take all the time you need, Aseles. We want you to be fully prepared for what you will face.” Leon was right, he was always right; this was a perfect opportunity to check up on the other worlds without having for any of them risking the security of Radiant Garden. She was the perfect candidate: she was used to traveling, knew the routes of the worlds they had visited, and already knew of the inhabitants of each world. She just….had to take someone with her by the way Leon was putting it; the idea of going alone slightly uneased her since she was so used to Sora, Donald and Goofy. If she took Kairi, that was already a bad luck charm she would rather avoid, not to mention the lecture Riku and Sora would give her. That left her with Dimitri, but also Raine if she wanted. Axel might also be available, but she knew Leon needed him to guard the posts when no one else could.

“Fine…I’ll think about it,” Aseles grumbled, receiving a brush on her back. “But Leon, I have to ask you something.”

“Hmm, what is it?” Leon asked. But he froze, seeing Aseles suddenly lift up her shirt, “Aseles-?”

“Is there something on my shoulder? It was hurting me when I was at Olympus, and I’m not sure why…”

“Hmm..let me see then,” Leon nodded, and reached to pull the back of her shirt fully up to reach the back of her neck. Aseles folded her arms to cover her chest with the front of the shirt, but she swallowed roughly when she realized Leon wasn’t moving after.

“Leon?”

“Aseles….did you touch anything?”

“W-What? Why?”

“Something is embedded in your skin.”

“No, I don’t think so-“

“I have to call Cloud.” Aseles was ordered to wait in the kitchen, while Leon went upstairs to get a mirror with Cloud on his way. It didn’t take long, and the three were now in Aseles room, the door closed for privacy. All the lights were turned on, Aseles shirt off to better reveal what she had. When Leon hovered the mirror over her back, Aseles’ eyes widened to the etched tattoo that had taken refuge on her. It resembled much of an eight pointed star, with four spikes taller and wider than the small ones they overlapped. Leon and Cloud continued to inspect and touch it, Aseles stomach churning unpleasantly of the sudden circumstance.

Cloud neared it with a stern face, his gloved hand rubbing the tattoo to see if it would smug, “It’s real.”

“Of course it’s real. It’s _on_ her,” Leon fought back his statement.

“It’s not good, if that’s what you wanted to hear,” Cloud flatly stated.

“Have you seen something like this before?” Leon grilled.

“Looks like a planted curse,” Cloud crossed his arms. “When did it start?”

“It sorta...just happened,” Aseles pieced together shakily, “In the middle of the tournament. What do you mean it’s a curse??”

Cloud nodded, “Something, or someone must’ve activated it.”

“Does it hurt you now?” Leon handed Aseles back her shirt, who took it with shaking palms.

“N-No, I feel fine right now…”

“Perhaps it was the Darkness that overtook the stadium, or the fake keyblade wielder you were fighting...” Cid hummed, “It could be a marker.”

“Y-You’re saying it could be a tracker?? Someone is tracking me??” Aseles fumbled to put on her shirt, her hair wild and untamed messily on her forehead.

“Nothing could be done?” Leon swallowed, refusing to let his cool wall topple.

“No...not at the moment. If it’s not affecting her now, we should wait a bit before we do something, but I’ll look into it if it eases you.” Cloud finished with a glance to her, “If something does happen...I’m not sure what we can do.”

It was not the news she wanted to hear.

A FEW DAYS LATER:

It was almost comical how much Dimitri got under her skin, like some sort of ridiculous sitcom she didn’t want to partake in. Maybe it was the way he looked at her, or the way he teased her, or the simple fact that when she offered chores to help around the town, Dimitri was always right next to her. Something in his eyes lingered in her mind right after. She groaned to herself, having to fight his pathetic, facial expression to finish her tasks. Had Leon talked to him too about the possibility of traveling together?

Now she was training in the Maw, having been invited by Bella. The two got along much better the past couple of days, Aseles admiring her get-go attitude and strong endurance for battle. She needed the training anyways, especially with Zack aiding Cloud and Auron on some rough construction along the borders of the town.

“ _Is_ something wrong?” Bella called out, cutting Aseles off of her trance stare again.

She rubbed off her cheek awkwardly, “Uh….it’s nothing.”

“You’re such a bad liar,” Bella stated flat out, making Aseles stab her keyblade to the ground. “What’s bugging you? It’s obvious something is,” she continued.

“A lot of things are bugging me…but nothing worse than that Dimitri,” Aseles confessed within strained teeth. “Leon wants to check if we’re…compatible-“

“HAHAHA!” Bella suddenly bellowed, her gun back in her holster.

Aseles shot her face at her, “It’s not funny!”

“Oh wow….really? You can’t be serious,” Bella coughed slightly, trying to compose herself, “Compatible? Does he want you dating him?”

“THAT IS NOT WHAT HE MEANT!” Aseles fought back, smacking Bella’s arm with her hand.

Bella was unmoved by it, “I’m only teasing.”

“I get that enough from him.”

“Yeah, sorry, Miss Boots.”

“I swear, Bella I will knock you out faster than your bullets can.”

“But hey, you can’t judge a book by its cover,” Bella replied, “Though…I’d be careful with that one. It doesn’t seem like he’s committed to being anyone’s friend.”

“No, _REALLY_? How can you tell?” Aseles wasn’t expecting Bella to give her a serious answer.

“Just the way he approaches others. He never really talks to anyone if you hadn’t noticed, so mainly…you’re the only person who’s gotten a word out of him, and Leon,” Bella replied. “I ran into Raine earlier, and he managed to bump into us. He didn’t say much to me, but said hi to Raine and kept walking off.”

“He said hi to Raine?” Aseles raised a brow.

“Yeah, it was kind of weird, but he probably gets along with her since she’s not always on his case.”

“Huh…that’s….interesting.”

“Well, funny thing is-“

“HEY!” The two turned toward the cliff of the Maw, seeing Kairi waving them over frantically, “It’s an emergency!” After a quick scale to the top, Kairi was catching her breath, waving her hand to the side, indicating something.

“Kairi, what is it?” Aseles urged her on.

“I-It’s Tron!” Kairi gasped out, “Cid told me to tell you to hurry to the Computer Room, in Ansem’s Study! The system is shutting down!” Aseles’ eyes widened, and she immediately took off with Kairi and Bella behind. She easily rushed past the Postern, and almost skidded into the wall from her quick haste. After slamming the doors open of the Study, she stumbled upon the blaring red Computer Room, the once shut down monitor now carrying a blinking red screen. With everything powered on, Aseles memorized the keys as best as she could, and amazingly managed to whir on the machine to transport her inside the Grid.

“Wow…this doesn’t look good,” Bella approached from behind with Kairi gasping beside her.

“Cid said…..that if we don’t fix it- I’m dying a bit, sorry- the computer in the U.S.S….might get corrupted,” Kairi announced, rubbing her head roughly.

“Alright, I’m going in,” Aseles announced, pressing a few keys, the error sounds growing louder.

“Aseles, w-wait-” The massive sound of whirring awoke the room, the three turning to see the beaming machine animating to life, and pointing the rod at the panel on the floor. Aseles pressed the button without a thought, and stood her ground onto the targeted area.

“Tell Cid I’ll go check it out!” Aseles shut her eyes, and felt the hot sting of the shooting beam.

“Aseles-no!” Kairi’s hands withdrew from the pixel-form of Aseles, her body staggering back with Bella quick to catch her before she fell. Kairi gasped to herself, running her fingers messily through her bangs, her eyes tight and shutting.

“Why do you have that look on your face?” Bella asked as the machine dulled from lack of energy.

Kairi gripped her hands, shaking her head, “I should’ve stopped her! If the system dies while she’s in it….” Kairi looked up at Bella as the two sets of eyes widened. Hurriedly they ran out of the Computer System, with Kairi directing them back down the Postern toward the U.S.S.


	18. Games

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Alright, onward we go.
> 
> This chapter was....frustrating to edit/re-write, so I hope it passes. Things might seem a bit slow because I'm introducing new characters, and plotlines, etc etc, but hopefully it picks up again. We're now safely over the middle of the story, so I'm trying not to rush things, and creating more solidified problems for Aseles to face on her own. 
> 
> Either way, I hope you enjoy this chapter. Excuse any typos because I'm probably not going to come back and edit this one anytime soon. Thanks for the support guys, stay fresh.
> 
> Sincerely,  
> -Keys

IN THE GRID:

The icy ground was refreshing, though the landing could’ve been better to her back. She faced the dark ceiling with flickering eyes, grumbling while she sat up. Her fingers brushed along her pulsing side, her head looking back and forth inside the dark room. The territory was greatly unfamiliar to her, and the lack of vibrant, neon colors advised her that she was in a different place. She had to be….

Cautiously, Aseles erected herself up, her eyes scanning the rolling chair that had been pushed back, and the slick, flat computer screen dead center at the far wall. She narrowed her eyes, but when she saw that her pixelated armor had been cut off of any power, she knew something was wrong. This was the Grid, right?? So why did it look so….broody and dimmer in light and color?

“Maybe…” Aseles hurried forward, her dark-gloved fingers pressing several keys, but the commands refused to recharge the computer, or resend her somewhere else for that matter; she was stuck here. “Great.”

The wielder turned and inspected the rest of the slicked, metal room; she concluded nothing else was vital in here. She caught the far door at the end of the room, and knew she would soon regret it once she was outside. With no choice but to _go_ in that direction, she opened the entrance to reveal a gloomy hallway. She hesitated but let her hands guide her across the wall to reach the exit. She peeked her head out for any sign of danger, but found she was in an abandoned building, far more architecturally advanced than she had seen. She _WAS_ in the Grid, RIGHT?

She swallowed roughly, her head wavering back and forth to study the unknown terrain as she continued her stride, not wanting to lose that brave momentum she had when she had pressed that key in the Computer Room; perhaps she should’ve waited to see what Kairi wanted to tell her. Well, too late for that, but she knew Tron was in trouble. He had to be if the system was dying down, and if it were, Radiant Garden would be highly penetrable for the Substitutes for invasion.

Outside, the tall empires and buildings stretched upwards to the dark sky. Overhead, the sounds of loud buzzing and whirring alerted her, but they passed her to let her remain undetected. Did the MCP get an upgrade, and turn the world like this? No one inhabited the streets, but Aseles knew she was not alone in such a vast landscape that resembled much of a city. Perhaps it was best if she laid low, and avoided the spotlights that lined along the sidewalks. She quickly hid within the shadows of the buildings nearby. From there she scanned the sector of streets securely, feeling her pressured chest containing her trembling ribs. Was it safe to head out? What direction should she go?

She swallowed whatever reluctance she had, and walked forward, now moving hurriedly across the deserted, hexagon-plated sidewalk. She refused to cut into a run, but had second thoughts when a dark figure was approaching her, their suit ornamented in red, neon outlines. Their face was completely concealed, and a belt of various gadgets caught her attention: this was a guard. It made matters worse when the sentry was headed straight for her direction. She realized their suit was more slick and modern rather than her dimmed, bulky armor and helmet.

“Identify,” the guard commanded with a low tone. Aseles halted in her stride, but she didn’t respond, and took a step back. The guard became more aggressive, “Identify yourself, program.”

“Uh….where am I?” Aseles tried instead, her right hand wriggling her digits behind her back, expanded readily. The guard did not repeat himself, and instead reached behind his back, and pulled out a ring, larger than a grown man’s palm. It abruptly whirred in heated energy, Aseles able to hear the running surge along the outline of the disk. Wait, why was he ready to fling i- OH CRAP.

In a second, Aseles flung her keyblade upwards, deflecting against the sparking disk aimed right at her chest. Her eyes widened to see the spark increasing, as if the disk was trying to cut her keyblade right in half to catch her vital organ. She deflected and bounced it off, standing on defensive to the guard that ran to her. He slammed his caught disk down, but Aseles managed to disarm him, looking at the dangerous frisbee fly out of bounds, giving her a chance to strike. However, when her keyblade cut across the man’s torso, she almost screamed from the rush of pixels swimming down her feet. The man’s stature instantly dropped, a pile of thousands of squared pixels and an abandoned disk the only remaining objects of the guard’s existence.

“ _ALERT. ALERT. VIOLATER IN SECTOR 35._ ” Aseles booked it, her dashing feet cutting across the bend of a street. The floor suddenly gave way, and she tossed her weight back to fall onto her rear to prevent falling forward. She quickly backed up, but gasped when her left arm met nothing but air, making her jolt back in place. She was stuck on the upright, hexagonal shape of the dark pavement, a blinding light encasing her entire form from above.  When she thought a helicopter was above her…she thought entirely wrong.

It was a massive machine, shaped like a bridge coming down on her. The extended legs served as stands as the main, horizontal pod began to hover down, showing her the row of trapped individuals, and two guards holding long staffs and advancing to her.

“On the ground program!” one commanded. Aseles swallowed, knowing her space was limited to her fighting range. One knock off, and she would be thrown into the dark abyss on either side of her. She relinquished her keyblade, placing her hands on her head. The guards didn’t waste time to yank her down, and start dragging her across the slanted platform to her beached stand.

“Where are you taking me?” Aseles snapped, but the robotic guards ignored her, and hauled her feet to stand in an empty spot in between two, upright men. She was turned in place, facing forward to the street. Her eyes instantly glanced along the aircraft, seeing the guards walk down their posts, and remain inside the pods designed for them at their patrolling stations. Aseles attempted to move, but the illuminated, blue outline held her feet down powerfully, the wall behind her generating cuffs around her arms. In a matter of seconds the platform she was imprisoned on hovered upwards, locked in place, and motioned the entire carrier into the sky.

The entire craft soared and ripped with a loud, buzzing hum, Aseles able to feel the heavy vibrations around her and the mist of the air collect around her face. The city was indeed populated, several orbs of lights walking along the streets thousands of feet below; she must’ve been transferred in a rural area, almost at the outskirts. By this rate, she wasn’t going to find Tron in such an expansive place.

“Great…” Aseles hissed, thudding the back of her head against the barricade.

“Guess we’re both in the same situation.” Her eyes hurried to her left, seeing a young man gazing to her, adorning a pair of crystal eyes. His blond hair was scuffled, but pointed upwards from the front much like Stan’s hairstyle. Then, she realized that he was not dressed like the others in the other imprisonments; he was actually dressed in casual, ordinary clothes, a pair of dark jeans and a jacket to name a few.

“Who...who are you?” Aseles observed him closely “You’re not part of this world...”

His eyes suddenly widened, his head leaning in, “How did you know?”

“Uh...it doesn’t matter,” Aseles replied quickly, “What are you doing here?”

“I’ll explain later, when we get the chance,” he examined the aircraft with a shifty glance, “But I don’t think there will be a chance. The name is Sam.”

“My name is Aseles. Where are they taking us? Do you know?” she exchanged quietly.

“Not a clue....” he shook his head lightly, “It doesn’t look too good for us.”

“Not the games...not the games...” Aseles looked over Sam’s opposite shoulder, seeing a program muttering the sentence over and over again, making her edgy.

“Games?” Aseles groaned at the thought, grimacing at the even mention of it. Damn it, was Stark still around? “Oh no…”

“What’s his problem?” Sam questioned, mostly directly to Aseles.

“You don’t want to know.”

Moments later, the carrier descended onto a large, ebony rooftop, powered by rotating fans on the outsides. They were delivered to the other side of the Grid, not the place Aseles would think Tron would be in. The guard on the farthest side on their left began to make his walk across, giving an order to each passing individual he stood directly in front of.

“Rectify. Rectify,” he continued down the line, arriving next to panicking program, “Games.” The programed man shuddered in absolute fear, attempting to save himself from the second and third guard gripping him off the platform, but he was dragged without consent or thought, heaved down the walkway.

“Look, I know you might get this a lot, but there’s been a hug-“ Sam started once confronted.

“Games,” the guard responded firmly, now standing in front of Aseles. He took a good look down to her, then drew his glance back up to her, “Games.” The next moment, two guards gripped onto her arms, and released her from her binds. She was pulled forward forcibly, her feet dashing down the sloped platform by the pace they were going. Their grips were iron, making the idea of squirming out of her trap unattainable.

“Hey, easy,” Sam curtly replied from in front of her, being dragged effortlessly.

“NOOO!” the hectic program from earlier was in a sudden sprint, breaking free of his selected guards. Aseles eyes widened from the lack of his restraint. He suddenly flung himself off the ledge they were on, Aseles wincing from the large spark of something chopping against the running fan. It sounded much like the sound of a pixelated guard disintegrating not too long ago.

“WAIT, WAIT! I’m not a program!” Sam shouted from the side. Aseles whirled her head back, seeing Sam being led to a different panel of the floor, right next to hers.

“Sam, I’ll come get you!” Aseles called out, obedient to her orders. Her feet were planted on yet another locking force field, the watchers abandoning her as they made their way across the platform. Aseles looked over to Sam across the side, but nothing quick enough could be exchanged when her circular-shaped platform dropped down. Her eyes shut tightly from drop, feeling her ears and jaw clench of her arriving fear of heights. Just when she thought she would faint, the floor stopped and locked onto solid ground again, revealing her an empty room with expansive and curved walls.

The sound of multiple chambers opening caught her attention, her eyes locking to the individual, female programs awakening from their pods at the corners. With a precise walk and straight necks, the slickly and tightly dressed women encircled Aseles, sharpening and bold eyes examining her from their high-heeled height. Without a thought, they all raised their left hands, their fingers formed like a gun and the corner of their fingertips igniting with hot, white fire. Aseles attempted to move, but from behind one of the glassed cylinders of her helmets was clutched, immobilizing her to move. With quick swipes and exactness, Aseles was left undressed and bare, the metal plates of her armor ripped and tossed aside. Her exposed hair rested on her shoulders, the remains of her helmet coming apart and dissolving on the floor. A black-like coat snaked up her feet, and commenced to wrap and coat her entire form.

A wrapping belt warped across her waist, a lit square of blue sealing it off in the middle. The fabric brushed over her shoulders, leaving her arms naked with the exception of cuffed, arm-guards shielding over her lower arms. Highlights of blue outlines wrapped around her sides and edges of her outfit, definitely making her more camouflaged in the world and its residents. She felt definitely more flexible, but more vulnerable if she thought about it.

A woman program rounded her in an angular, square path, in her hands the same disk she saw strapped to the guards from earlier.

A woman instructor advised from above the room, “ _YOU WILL BE GIVEN A DISK. EVERYTHING YOU DO WILL BE IMPRINTED ON THIS DISK. FAILURE TO FOLLOW ORDERS OR THE LOSS OF YOUR DISK WILL RESULT IN DE-RESOLUTION._ ”

Aseles felt the spin of the object against her back, and clock into place onto her suit. She felt the vibration of it run across her skin and eyes, immediately shutting them to refocus her attention. It felt like it was connected to her body as a whole, thoughts swimming into it like a hungry blackhole.

“This can’t be good…” Aseles mumbled lowly, seeing the women retreating in accurate, backward marches, sealing themselves back into the pods they were encased in earlier. The field around her imprisonment was released, making her able to move her feet freely, but really….was that such a blessing now that she was trapped?

The wall in front of her diagonally parted, revealing the blinding exit she was now having second thoughts about. With no other options however, Aseles strode forward, and found the light dimming to reveal her a glass, rectangle chamber. She leaned in to press her hands against the glass window,  seeing she in complete darkness, with other lit chambers stationed around to form a full circle. The glass door behind her hissed to a sharp close, and the whole row of chambers slightly spun to rise to the stadium Aseles found herself in.

“ _THE GAMES WILL NOW COMMENCE_.”

The thousands of programs surrounded and cheered to the hovering and rotating column of four rows. In each tier, the glass chambers spun and rotated to release the total of sixteen players with Aseles on the very top. She looked straight to the male opponent released in the opposite way of her retreating glass door. Across the way on her right side, she saw different-outfitted Sam, the two separated by the glass, thick wall. Sam appeared to be too focused on his surrounding, and Aseles called out to him to gain his attention.

“Hey, Sam!” The man looked over, and he honestly looked more lost than an abandoned puppy.

“What do I do?” he called out to her desperately. Aseles twirled her head in her spot, looking for a possible sign for an exit. Then, she looked below, seeing the gridded floor was too high to jump from their top tier; they would have to go down the rows until they got to the very bottom.

“If we head down, we can escape across the floor!” Aseles indicated with a finger.

Sam followed, and nodded, “Okay, how do we do that?” Ahead, Aseles felt the sound of running energy, her eyes widening to see her combatant was taking out his disk, and facing her directly.

“You win!” Aseles pointed Sam to his opponent. Sam shot his glance over, clearly unexcited for the fight that was about to commence.

“ _ROUND ONE_.” The crowd roared, Aseles quick to flash out hey keyblade from her charging opponent, and almost crapping her pants from how suddenly a helmet swooped down to cover her face. She dodged sideways, sliding underneath the swung disk that ricocheted across the walls to draw back to the player’s hand. Aseles gritted her teeth, knowing there was no other way out of this match.

Again, the disk shot out with deadly accuracy, but Aseles was much quicker, and deflected the disk aside. With a swing of her keyblade, her legs kicked her around full spin, and her weapon flung like a shimmering and lit boomerang. It caught the program at his side, his defeat signaled with the many pixels raining and spraying across the floor. The missed disk clattered to the ground beside the pile, Aseles exhaling to catch her breath normally again. She looked over, seeing Sam slam his disk down onto the floor, the shaped glass giving way and swallowing Sam’s opponent whole. Aseles winced from the breakage of the man’s form, thousands of pixels dividing on the top roof of the rotating beam beneath them.

“ _COMBATANT FOURTEEN, WINNER. COMBATANT THREE, WINNER_.” Aseles hurried across the way, Sam looking up to her. They stood before each other before the glass, Aseles watching as their tier was now rotating downwards to place them in the second row of the column.

“How do we get out?” Sam asked. Aseles shut her eyes, trying to think. However, she almost jumped at Sam’s urgent idea, “T-The floor!”

“The floor-….Oh!” Aseles almost slapped herself.

“Hurry, Aseles!” Sam shouted as he began to dash to the made gap he had won with earlier, and slid onto his back to grip at the edge of the opening. Aseles hurried to the middle of her field, watching as the rotating row beneath her approached leisurely. She lifted her keyblade upwards, and slammed the sharp head against the floor, making it give way. She felt her body heavily drop, and she found herself landing on the glass roof.

“C’mon!” Sam shouted from across the way, Aseles hurrying after him.

“ _COMBATANTS FOURTEEN AND THREE IN VIOLATION._ ”

“We need to get to the one below us!” Aseles nodded down to the oncoming platform.

“Wait, what is that?” blue eyes wandered to Aseles’ keyblade, his hands withdrawing at its sight.

“I’ll explain later! Jump!” The two leapt down, landing roughly with both hitting the glass on their sides. The row of matches beneath them continued, but Aseles was in no need to intervene in their little game. They jumped across another gap, arriving to the edge to jump down to the final tier.

“ _COMBATANS FOURTEEN AND THREE, DIRECT VIOLATION_.” The crowd booed in disapproval of their escape, but the two were undeterred of their attempt, and finally leapt to land poorly at the unexpected height and drop.

“There’s no way out,” Aseles sighed heavily, inspecting the perfectly sealed chamber they had landed in. She lifted her keybalde, and slammed it down against the ground, but it was proofed further than the ceiling.

“ _COMMENCING FINAL ROUND. COMBATANTS FOURTEEN AND THREE VERSUS RINZLER_.” The crowd thrashed and wasted their crying lungs at the mention of the last name, Aseles already regretting of them landing in here.

“You have to be kidding me,” Sam announced lowly, his disk back in hand. Aseles straightened and faced the male rising from the opposite side, adorned in a tight attire of black. He boldly stepped onto the field, his face hidden beneath a dark and solid helmet. On it, Aseles could picture her and Sam, standing side by side, obviously unprepared.

“ _COMMENCE FINAL ROUND_.” The male named Rinzler separated his stance with open feet, reached back with both hands to pull not one, but _two_ disks in hand. They charged full throttle, the crowd praying his name in a ferocious chant..

“Is that even legal!?” Sam retorted, trying to split his disk into two.

“Here!” Aseles reached behind, grappling at her disk. She snapped it sideways, and it released to be handed to Sam.

He blinked in surprise, “Are you sure?”

“Get ready!” Aseles posed, keyblade in hand as she watched Rinzler intently. Sam readied himself, and delivered the first strike with a toss of his disk. It cut across the air, but Rinzler was no beginner or amateur for that matter; the fighter spun in the air, the disk missing his head by mere inches as it hit the back wall. It then cut back, hovering over the hunched Rinzler, and arriving back to Sam’s possession. The crowd applauded his amazing performance, and anticipated his next move when he stood up again.

“Why does it feel like we just got dumped on?” Sam irritably complained.

“My turn,” Aseles charged, keyblade gripped in hand and met Rinzler in the middle of the battlefield. She cut across and upwards, grunting as the sparking disks threatened to cut at the neck of her weapon. She pushed back, spinning in full circle to throw off Rinzler. The man suddenly leapt up, and caught his foot at the head of her keyblade. Aseles’ eyes widened, and she wasn’t able to process the next second; her body flew back, her body rolling across the ground, keyblade out of her grip. Her head pounded heavily of Rinzler’s kick, and she wasn’t able to distinguish the real one from the three headed straight to her. Sam’s yell echoed in the chamber, both disks of his flying and catching Rinzler who was unmoved of the attack. His attention was now on Sam, Aseles standing up hurriedly, sprinting to aid her friend.

Both Sam and Aseles dodge-rolled out of the way of the slamming disks, trying to disable Rinzler’s defensive stance. It proved useless, the keyblade deflected at every possible outcome and Sam’s inexperience with handling two weapons at once. The younger man was kicked off to the side, leaving Aseles to fight with Rinzler for the next couple of seconds.

He was an acrobat, a worthy opponent but not one Aseles wanted to deal with right now; his thrusts and cuts were swift and deadly, Aseles having to rely more on her physical, upper strength to dodge the oncoming attacks. Her keyblade was merely a stick compared to Rinzler’s agile and swooping movements, his feet enabling him to slide and dance across the smooth ground.

“Tch!” Aseles met the ground, facing the ceiling, and seeing Rinzler hover over her.

“Hey!” Sam slammed his disks across, Rinzler easily knocking him back. He advanced faster than Sam could block, and he too met the same fate and was on the ground. Sam seethed, his cut arm exposed and dripping red. The red-lined disks aimed at Sam’s neck, Rinzler unmoving of his posture.

“DE-RESOLUTION!” the crowd chanted as Sam struggled to be let go.

“No!” Aseles pulled herself to her feet, making way to Sam’s aid. Her vision was cut short, her body kicked back from the second, unknown opponent that invaded the field. Aseles rolled across the floor, and she yelped at the crushing foot at the base of her shoulder. The boot rolled and pressed, making Aseles release her keyblade. She shot her eyes up, seeing a tall, lean figure of a man invade her presence. His goatee was distinct on his face, emphasizing his pointed chin and dark eyes. His attire was much like Rinzler’s, minus the ambiguous helmet; his baggy pants were held by a dark belt, his gloved hand holding absent of a disk, but occupied with a keyblade.

“G-Get off!” Aseles yelled, but was met with a crushing blow as an answer. The back of her jumpsuit was gripped, and she was towed to her staggering feet. Rinzler copied, and brought a dazed Sam upwards. Sam rubbed his forehead roughly, trying to recall a sense of direction.

“IDENTIFY.” A male voice boomed from above the stadium, the crowd unamused of the discontinuity of the match.

“My name is Sam Flynn!” Sam had rung out in compliance. The crowd suddenly fell dead silent. Not good.

“What a coincidence this is, isn’t it?” the man behind Aseles lulled out, snapping her right arm against her back.

“I’m so going to kick your face in,” Aseles hissed angrily, wincing of the tight clutch.

“We’ll see about that soon enough....” he replied coldly.

The duo was transported below the opening of the stands, Aseles feeling far too tense in the pitch darkness aside from the lights of her suit and the others. Once the light entered their containment, Aseles looked over to see Sam catch her eye, an uncertain expression strained on his face. Clearly he was someone important, if the mention of his name silenced an entire crowd of people, but who he was? Aseles wasn’t sure. He was definitely not a program; he bled, just like an ordinary person. He was a real person stuck in here like she was. But, how did he even get in here was a better question.

The hallway led to the lifting elevator at the end, Aseles wincing at the clutching palm at the back of her neck, leading her inside with Sam. It rose in quick succession to a room facing the stadium, another pair of matches having commenced in their absence. The main, center chair of the control room turned, several guards posted around the room for security measures. The door behind the two closed now. Aseles was released with a shove, Sam helping her to stand up properly.

“Are you alright?” Sam asked first.

“Uh…yeah..” she rubbed her chest tenderly, “How’s your arm?”

“It will heal but…” Sam didn’t finish, both pair of eyes now staring at the advancing, cloaked man at the top step in front of them.

“What a surprise....two treats in one day.” The orange-outlined coat wavered as he walked down to meet the two face to face, his concealed appearance displaying their reflections on his helmet. It tilted, as if he were inspecting them carefully. His voice didn’t sound familiar.

“I’ve been waiting for you....Sam.”

“Who are you?” Sam scowled at the verge of annoyance. “Why did you bring us here?”

The dark helmet pulled back in a sharp flash, baring a man with dirty blond hair, and callous eyes. He smirked visibly, finding mirth in Sam’s staggered expression.

Sam’s throat pulsed with hands twitching at his sides, “Dad...?” He croaked out.

Dad….gosh, he had to be kidding, right?! How could this be Sam’s father? They were…practically the same age, reaching mid-to-late twenties as least. But a closer inspection showed Aseles that they were similar in appearance; both had the soft glint of cerulean eyes. Why did…Sam appear all astounded? Had his father been missing? Had he been stuck here as they were years ago?

“How you doing kiddo?” the male in the orange replied coolly, his stone face reemerging. “How’d you get in here?”

“D-Dad...what are you doing here? I mean...I got your message,” Sam replied quickly in reassurance, his body more relaxed, more willing to embracing this man he called his father.

“Oh....” presumed _dad_ answered, “and I see you have a friend here.”

Aseles took a step back of his stealthy approach, but grunted when she felt the snap at her neck from behind, digits digging into her. The Substitute behind breathed out a satisfied hum. Sam stared with narrowed eyes, unsure how to react between the Substitute and his father.

“Haha...isn’t this something?” Sam’s father replied boldly, stepping back to stand in front of the two again.

“But...you look the same...what’s happened to you?” Sam replied next, barely noticing the young age of the man.

“A lot has happened Sam, more than you can ever imagine...” the man smirked in such a manner, Aseles knew he was already bad news. “Disk.” The one named Rinzler stepped up, handing over Sam’s disk while still holding Aseles’ in his grip. The leading man took it and stepped off to the side momentarily, inspecting it carefully. After a moment, the man lifted his head in satisfaction, and turned back to face Sam, returning to disk to Rinzler to properly place it back on Sam again.

“Hmm...would’ve expected more from you, Sam,” the man replied lowly, “The next disk.” Rinzler stepped up, and handed the man Aseles’. She swallowed roughly, and when he tried to open something in the compartment of the disk, nothing happened. He rattled it playfully, and advanced to stand in front of Aseles again.

“Looks like your mind is blocked from me,” he tersely replied, eyes locked and pinning Aseles.

“You wouldn’t be the first,” Aseles retorted, feeling the digits of the Substitute dig into her. She squirmed, trying her best to not swing her keyblade into play. She winced as the disk was once more turned to plunge against her back.

“You....you were trapped in here?” Sam replied carefully, catching his father’s attention again.

“That’s correct,” the man nodded, pacing around the room with his eyes locked on Sam.

Sam continued, “And…you’re in charge?”

“Right again,” the man purred in agreement, “Two for two.”

“So...can’t we just go home?” Sam questioned, seeming distraught of the entire experience.

“Not in the cards...not for you,” the man replied intently, “Not even for your friend.” Aseles feet fastened to the ground, suspecting they were not in safe hands anymore.

“That’s a hell of a way to treat your son...” Sam glared up, his arms bent at his sides with hands into fists.

“Oh, that, well you see the thing is,” the man stepped forward, leaning in to look at Sam directly at his face, “I’m not your father, Sam...but I’m very happy to see you.” At that moment, Aseles swung her arm back, lashing her keyblade out. The Substitute let her go, but didn’t even give her a chance to swing. He hooked an arm underneath hers, and he pull her arm in the opposite direction. She cried out sharply, her keyblade dropping to the ground, her front and face hitting the ground. She was glad for the on-command helmet, or she would have a broken nose for sure.

“No! Stop!” Sam shouted, hunched down with his arms pulled back by Rinzler and a second guard. “CLU! What did you do to my father?!”

“Same thing I’m going to do to you....Users.”

Aseles was tugged in several directions, her eyes unable to focus or align onto the straight floor. She had no idea where she was being taken, but already being separated from Sam told her the secluded area was not a place of paradise. She groaned against the white floor, any decorations of extra doors and windows out of the question; she struggled to sit up, rubbing her face with a hand as the other tried to hold her up. The sound of footsteps alerted her, her eyes watching the refocusing figures of Clu, Rinzler, and the Substitute.

“Where the hell am I?” Aseles yelled out, standing defensively, “Where are you taking Sam?!”

“Oh, I’m sure that’s not who you’re worried about, is it?” the one named Clu dismissed her, stepping into her prison cell with hand extended to her. “It can’t be what brought you here.”

“I don’t know who you are, but you better let me go, or else,” Aseles threatened.

“Do you know…where Tron is?” Aseles froze, the grip of her fists digging into her fabric.

“Tron?” Aseles inhaled sharply, “What have you done to Tron? Where is he!?”

Clu’s eyes wandered, and scorched into hers, “Well, he’s in this room.”

“Wha-“ No…it wasn’t the Substitute…it was...she looked at the one named Rinzler. Her shoulders dropped, but her anger rose tenfold when she saw Clu grinning.

“What did you do to him?” Aseles clenched her teeth, only able to hear the muffled, popping noise from within the confinements of his helmet. Tron....

“I will give you back Tron....if you hand me something in return...” Clu replied slyly with a raised chin. “Hand me the assistance of your keyblade....and we’ll call it a deal.”

“No way,” Aseles cut in immediately, “I will never help someone like you!”

“If you have no means of giving it up easily, Hale will have to change your mind,” Clu replied, heading to the door as Rinzler followed. Aseles sprinted, but gritted her teeth as the Substitute named Hale paused in front of the closing door, facing her directly. She leapt a few steps back, holding her keyblade out with two hands, unable to remove the rough thudding of her injured arm from moments ago.

“What the hell are _you_ doing in the Grid?” Aseles snapped angrily, her shoulders shaking.

“The only concern you have right now, is wondering how you are going to get out of this, alive,” the thick, raw dialect stood her mind to attention. “You either give up your pretty little keyblade, or I’ll have to persuade you another way.”

Aseles furrowed her eyebrows, “You’ll have to pry it off of me…”

Hale stopped, turning his keyblade sideways with his arm stretched out fully, “Suit yourself.” A malicious grin rose on his thin lips, and charged. Aseles slammed her keyblade in front, blocking and feeling her feet stagger on her position. The man’s heavy boot shot forward, catching Aseles on top of her thigh, making her cry out sharply. The side of her head stung and shook, the head of her keyblade having blocked the swing of Hale’s weapon, but not enough to halt the momentum. Aseles fell to the ground, and dodged to the side from the stab to her arm. She stood and ran, ferociously cutting her keyblade horizontally across, but cursed to herself when he blocked every single one.

“My turn!” Hale withdrew his keyblade, and gracefully ducked beneath Aseles, making her eyes widen. She gasped and screamed, feeling the side of Hale’s keyblade pierce across her side, tearing open her outfit and unleashing a small pop of blood across the ground. Aseles paled immediately, and she fell onto the ground, holding her side desperately to stop the flow. The gash burned, her eyes and lips trembling of the terrible turn of events. She screamed in agony when she felt Hale’s boot stomped onto her hands, the buds of her palm rubbing involuntarily against her cut.

“Listen, you’re a good girl, right? So, I will give you a moment to think about your options.” Hale leaned down, and patted her head before smacking the back of it, “You might…reconsider your decision.” Aseles watched him with teary eyes as he made his way to the door, and closed it with a hiss. Aseles groaned in her cracking gasps, her normal side sliding her to the nearest wall. She pressed her back against it, sighing heavily of the cool surface against her burning side. She reached into her pockets desperately, but yelled angrily and tearfully with a pounding fist against the floor; her potions were removed in the changing room.

“I-It’s going to be….f-f-fine…!” she pleaded to herself, gritting her teeth and holding her wound. “W-What would Sora do…what would Sora do….” It was there, Aseles realized no one was going to come and get her. Aseles was alone. “Damn it….damn it!” Aseles punched against the floor, stabilizing her gasps to breathe normally. But the pain….the pain was getting to her. It was the physical pain and emotional comprehension that no one was here to help her, and she wasn’t going to have any other choice but to aid this…Clu.

Why would someone like Clu want with the keyblade? No doubt something scheming if the Substitutes were involved.

A shout from outside the door awake Aseles from her doze, her side immobilizing her to get up. She winced from the sudden jerk of her lifted head, her throat jumping of the pair of footsteps stopping in earshot, and something hard slamming. Another rough thud rung out, and the hiss of the entrance dropped the heavy object inside the room. Aseles jumped from the unconscious and beaten Hale, his forehead battered red with his keyblade loose in his grip. Above him stood a broad figure, his face so recognizable that Aseles wanted to cry out in surprise, but resisted the temptation to satisfy Dimitri.

“W-What are you doing here?” Aseles gasped out, teeth gritting to relieve her of the stress of sitting up. Dimitri literally stepped over the sleeping Sub, his tone, exposed arms swinging him into a swift rhythm. His black chains hit the side of his pants, but his eyes did not falter of their intense presence.

“Oh, I don’t know. Dropping by to see how you’re doing. And by the look of things, Boots, not so great,” Dimitri kneeled with bent knees and arms crossed. Aseles glared to him, but looked past him to see Raine at the opened door, her entirely gloved arms and fingers holding and pressing against the door. Her violet eyes expanded from the unconscious man on the floor of the room. Her hand covered her mouth, her eyes avoiding him as she hurried over.

“Did you really have to go this far? You said we would just……come in quietly!” Raine stomped a foot down, her eyes nervously hurriedly looking back to the door. “The guards will be here any minut-“

“Will you stop lecturing, I’m moving!” Dimitri cut in sharply, his eyes rolling, “Jeezes. Alright, here we go-“  
“H-Hey, OW!” Aseles gasped sharply, and was lifted in Dimitri’s arms, her shoulders and thighs tucked underneath. Her damaged side was left exposed outward, and needless to say, the cool air that touched it when Dimitri began walk felt relieving. She glowered at Hale as they walked over him, and when Aseles looked into the raided hallway, she was not surprised of the mayhem that ensued; the walls were partially destroyed and left open, with connections cut off and leftover pixels of guards rolling across the floor. Dimitri hastened his grip on Aseles as they came across the bend, Raine leading them down in several directions of the building.

“Hurry!” Raine quickly ordered as Dimitri picked up his pace, Aseles grunting from the abrupt jumps that managed to touch at her injury. Aseles shut her eyes, concentrating more on her sanity and resilience to keep quiet as Dimtiri and Raine calculated themselves across the corridors. Aseles picked up the sounds of guards running in the opposite directions.  They had sure left an impression invading the building, Aseles surprised that they were even able to find her.

“In here!” Raine motioned to the dark elevator at the end. The three entered it, Dimitri leaning his back against the wall as Raine took out her keyblade, and sparked the control panel to life. The bolts reenergized the buttons, and it began to move to Raine’s command.

“Hanging in there?” Dimitri replied, his eyes looking down to Aseles.

“I’m not really in the mood to deal with your sass, Dimitri,” Aseles tried not to retort.

“You kind of deserve it, for pulling a stupid stunt, _again_. The redhead said she told you no, and you still came inside this circuit circus.” The elevator stopped, Aseles jumping at the sudden halt. Her eyes looked to the opening hatch, and found they were in the streets again. Raine and Dimitri swiftly headed out, dodging and swerving around the pedestrians of programs. Dimitri tried his best to be careful, but his shoulders were more of clubs rather than polite shoves.

“ _VIOLATION. SECTOR 3._ ”

“Hurry!” Raine dashed around a corner, the three headed into an alleyway.

“I’m driving!” Dimitri quickly announced.

“Huh?” A vehicle, designed similar to a dune-buggy awaited the group with lit, spiked wheels and a single headlight in front of the slender hood. The compartment was boxed in by a steel-like and white exterior with a pair of cannons in the front, and one large one tied to the back of the machine.

“Think you can shoot?” Dimitri replied, but it wasn’t a request because he immediately sat Aseles in the double, backseats of the car, almost tossing her in like a bag of sand.

“O-Oh….” Raine gulped, and pointed forward from the car, indicating to the red, outlined motorcycles headed their way.

“You can’t be serious.”

“Fuck this,” Dimitri slammed his foot on the pedal, the vicious car shooting backwards to head onto the street. Aseles slammed her hands onto the throttles of the cannon gun, and felt her body tossed back and forth from the constant swerving. With  the shift cranked and tossed forward, Dimitri floored the car in full gear, the wheels screeching loudly as the programs screamed and fled from the streets. Aseles’ hair whipped forward on her face, her front facing the back of the car, and watching the approaching motorcycles following right behind them.

“Don’t stare! Shoot!” Dimitri commanded from in front, and swerved the vehicle around a corner. Aseles hugged the controls tightly, preventing herself from flying out. Once the automobile was directed straight, she gripped onto the two rods stationed behind the cannon, peeked into the scope provided, and fired.     

The hot flashes of missiles cut and chewed against the street, several catching one motorcycle and throwing it off course to crash into the side of a building. With four left, Aseles moved the cannon’s fire from side to side, groaning irritably from how agile they swerved and separated from each other.

Different sets of programs screamed as they cleared to the sidewalks, pointing and shouting as Aseles battered the assaulting orbs against one guard, making the man yell as his front wheel tattered in pieces. He flipped over, taking the motorcyclist behind him hit him, now leaving two.

“We’re taking a short-cut!” Dimitri announced but quickly veered to the side, making Aseles slam against the back of the car, grunting.

“Hey! Watch it!” she shouted, looking ahead to see Dimitri firing the cannons from in front, breaking through the stationed guards that had tried to blockade them.

“I warned you!” Dimitri shouted back in annoyance, racing the car forward with Raine gripping onto the side of her seat. Aseles faced her duo of foes again, and fired restlessly until she caught the center of the road, throwing the guards off-course and making them skid and roll across the ground.

“Watch out!” Raine screamed, all eyes shooting to the right side of the car. Hovering overhead and to their direction was one single motorcycle, with the player named Rinzler on top of it. Dimitri reacted quickly, slamming onto the pedal and pushing the vehicle onto the sidewalk, barely dodging the motorcycle from landing on top of them. Rinzler swerved, and was perfectly aligned beside them, the front of his bike lifting to reveal the assault cannons underneath the hood.

“Wait!” Aseles called out, but she gritted her teeth with clamped hands to hold on. Dimitri rammed the car against Rinzler’s, making the motorcycle stagger, but Rinzler recuperated quickly, and was approaching the rear.

“We’re almost there!” Raine cried out pleadingly. The trio’s car was now racing past two watchtowers, their distance to the barren wasteland of rock and dirt approaching ever so quickly.

“Take him out, Aseles!” Dimitri commanded out. Her eyes shot to the approaching Rinzler, whose hands clutched at the bars of his handles, cannons whirring to life.

“B-But,” Aseles hesitated, her palms shaking at the controls.

“Aseles, do it!” Dimitri growled, his eyes fastened to the road again. “Do it or he’s going to shoot!”

“I-I can’t!” Aseles confessed, shaking her head. “That’s Tron! That’s my friend, Tron!”

“Aseles!” Raine ducked her head as the cannons were at now full capacity. Rinzler pulled the trigger.

The car screeched forward, Aseles tossed into the backseat as the firing explosion met a second, a dune-buggy similar to theirs, having released the second projectile to deflect Rinzler’s. Finally the spiked wheels of both cars touched the ground, and both cut across the tundra, exiting the city grid. Aseles looked back, her chest heaving of the left rider on the paneled floor. His concealed face looked onward to their escape, Aseles shutting her eyes of her failed attempt to bring back Tron.

“Follow me!” an unrecognizable tone called out from the mysterious machine, Aseles looking over to see a woman was driving it, with a bob of jet-black hair.

The two cars linked in their path, Dimitri easily controlling the car while the first cut through a large mountain side, and began to encircle around the curving trail to the mountain’s top. Aseles laid herself fully in the back seat, her hands rubbing her face with side pressed against the leathered seats. Her mind raced of the several possibilities she could’ve taken to take Tron, but each fantasy involved him remembering. Having him about to shoot her and her friends….it was highly unlikely that he did. What did….what did Clu do to him?

The two ramming machines paused, and a moment later rose up in their individual platforms. After a few seconds, the platforms laid still, the group now secured in some large, white garage. Aseles squinted past the bright lights from above, but sat herself up and pushed her bangs back from her sweaty face. She opened the compartment to her side, taking Raine’s help to stand her up.

“Thanks…” Aseles sighed, but faced Dimitri who rounded the front of the car and glared to her.

“What the hell was that?” Dimitri slammed his fist against the hood, his face leering down to her. “Why didn’t you shoot when I told you to?!”

“I think I’m losing years the more times you yell at me,” Aseles flatly responded, pressing a clutching hand to her gash. “I couldn’t shoot, so I didn’t shoot.”

“At the expense of our lives?” Dimitri argued back. “You just don’t learn from stupid mistakes, do you??”

“Hey!” the woman from the other vehicle was now in view, and she pressed a firm hand against Dimitri’s chest, pushing him back. He shot his glare to her, but she was unmoved by it, “We rescued your friend. This is not the time to fight. We must heal her wound.”

“She’s _not_ my friend,” Dimitri spat, and suddenly moved his way across the garage to the long hallway at the end. He opened the white door, and disappeared when he turned left. Aseles scoffed at his rude remark, but her mind rattled back to the emerging pain on her side again.

“Jeezes…this really hurts,” she exhaled shakily.

“It looks awful…” Raine sighed, rubbing her face briefly. “Come here.” She hooked Aseles’ arm over her shoulders, the strange woman taking the other side.

“We’ll patch it up once we head inside the loft,” the woman reassured. “My name is Quorra. Your friends-….friend, Raine, has told me some about you, Aseles.”

“Nice to meet-…..ow…..you,” Aseles nodded, and the two began to guide her where Dimitri had entered.

The spacious room was purely lit with white light, almost decorated like the interior of a house. A bookshelf was on the far left and a couple of tables at Raine’s right; a dining table sat at the far end of the room and in the middle hung a large chandelier made of clear, eye-drop shaped glass. A chess board was set in front of the bookcase with a seat for two people, and a set of couches rested at the far left of the room. Unpredictably, a wall did not conceal the room inside the mountain, but a grid-like clear structure settled where the farthest wall should be, revealing the vast city at the remote distance. Outside stood Dimitri, secluded from the lit chamber. Aseles frowned in his direction, only able to see his back to them.

“You’re here!” Aseles looked toward the side of the bookshelf, Sam rushing over with an unknown, scruffy-bearded man of middle age right behind him. His crystal eyes examined Aseles wound, “What happened?”

“We should let her get some rest. This way,” the man with gray hair nodded, and wavered his fingers to the door they appeared room. “Quorra, Raine, this way.” They entered the quiet hallway, three rooms set around at the end. They ended up going to the left room, the elder man opening it to reveal a king-sized bed and a large cabinet drawer beside it.

“W-Where am I? Who are you?” Aseles questioned, keeping her panting at a minimum.

“We’ll explain everything to you once you’re healed,” the man replied, “Quorra, we should leave them to it.”

“Of course,” Quorra nodded, but blinked when she saw Raine start to head out. “Where are you going?”

“I need to go get Dimitri, he has the…potions to heal her,” Raine fumbled with her words, and hurried out.

Aseles sighed roughly, slapping her hand to her face, “I’d rather bleed out then.”

Quorra frowned, but she walked over, and sat beside Aseles, “Your friends were worried, though I don’t know why the boy yelled at you so profusely.”

“We don’t like each other, that’s all,” Aseles replied, trying not to touch her wound.

“Hmmmm….maybe you will someday,” Quorra smiled, bringing an innocent smile to her lips.

“Yeah, we’ll see…” Aseles nodded, wanting to snap at Quorra with an unnecessary quip. “Thank you for saving us back there…”

“It was not a problem. Rest for a bit,” Quorra patted her back, and stood once the door opened. Dimitri strode in gently, but he didn’t bother to look at Quorra, “I’ll clean her wound.” Quorra nodded, gave Aseles a last, reassuring glance and left the room. Dimitri avoided Aseles’ gaze, and reached back to close the door behind him. His jaw was set and hard, his cheekbones pulsing underneath his tight skin. Aseles exhaled heavily, sitting herself back awkwardly.

Dimitri grabbed a nearby chair, and set it diagonally across Aseles on the edge of the bed, “Move forward.”

“Give me the potion,” Aseles extended out her hand, her opposite arm curling beneath her chest.

“Don’t whining, Aseles. You’re in no condition to-“

“You know what, I would rather suffer from the open wound than have you continuously battering me like I’m a kid. Now give me the potion!”

“Aseles, I swear!” Dimitri deeply groaned, huffing out his fueling anxiety, “You’re getting on my last nerve….”

“Then…why are you here?” Aseles probed further, exhaling out when Dimitri caught her eyes. “Why did you get on the Grid?”

Dimitri rested his jaw against his curved hand, his broad back expanding as he hunched, “I kind of had to. Or else Leon would’ve had my head on a platter which, I’m sure, would have overjoyed everyone. But you know me, I like to kill everyone’s buzz.” Aseles frowned at his statement, sitting forward a bit more. This sparked Dimtiri’s interest, and he looked up, removing his chin from his prompted hand.

“Look….about earlier, I couldn’t shoot Rinzler, the one that was chasing us.” She admitted carefully, running her fingers across her neck, her fingertips running her sore muscles, “I’ll explain soon but…I think he’s my friend.”

Dimitri suddenly scoffed, his arms slumped in between his parted legs, “You think? What, did you forget what the old sap looked like?”

“It’s not a joke! I’m serious-“ Aseles groaned, her fingers twitching over her wound.

“Here,” Dimitri handed her a elixir, making her blink of the sudden, kind gesture. “You’re a big girl, you can close it up yourself.”

Aseles took it carefully, blinking gently of his surrendering squabble, “Thanks…”

“It was foolish of you to come inside here,” Dimitri stood, moving the chair aside, away from Aseles’ path. Aseles looked to him, seeing his eyes harden by a fraction, a hidden intention swirling around the galaxies of his irises, “You think you have some obligation to fix everything, but Aseles, get a grip on reality: you don’t always have to be the hero.” She stayed still, the elixir in her hand feeling cold and rough at her touch. Dimitri sighed, his hazel eyes seeming to have lightened up, something Aseles couldn’t have imagined without proof. He headed out of the room, and closed the door behind him.

Aseles sat still in place, her eyes fixing around the floor in front of her. She exhaled shakily, hugging the elixir to her chest, her eyes shutting from how hard those words stretched her skin. Why…why did he have to make that sound sincere? Could it be that Dimitri was toying with her? They had been bickering since he got here, so why…..why did Aseles feel he was being genuine this time? Was it the fact that he actually left her alone, and believed she could heal her own wounds?

Yes…he did, because he left her to do it rather than being insistent on doing it himself. He was….confident she could fix herself back up, so they could get going, keep herself determined. She knew if she didn’t, he would take Raine and leave her here anyways. She had to…keep up with him, she had to pick up some of the pieces she lost. This wasn’t the time to mess around. She had to save Tron.

Aseles took the elixir, drinking slowly and inspecting her recovering wound and sown outfit. She stood and opened the door, surprised to see Sam was walking over, with Dimitri awaiting by the hallway.

Sam smiled, “Aseles, you’re recovered? I’m glad you’re alright...”

Aseles nodded, “I’m glad you are too. But...where are we? How did you escape?”

Sam gestured down the hallway, Dimitri leading around the bend of the corridor, “Come on, my dad will explain everything.”

It was a bit of a rush to hear everything Kevin Flynn had to say.

Sam’s father, his _real_ father, was the inventor of the Grid, but had been trapped here for years. He had hoped to change the human world he was from, a name Aseles wasn’t familiar with, but astounded that his Grid extended even to Radiant Garden. He pressed on, revealing he was the man who had invented Clu, which is why they were practically twins all those years ago. He wanted them both to create a perfect world…until the ISOs emerged from the Grid.

Not programs nor humans, the ISOs were organisms that had manifested in the Grid without a creator or program, and were to be delivered to Flynn’s world. Clu had seen their conflicting foundations, and had rid them all…and had fought against Flynn, and Flynn’s helper and friend, Tron.

“Tron? You knew Tron?” Aseles couldn’t help but interrupt.

“This is a small world, isn’t it?” Flynn chuckled, “He was a friend….a good friend.”

“No no, Tron is alive!” Aseles gripped onto the ledge of the dining table.

Flynn’s eyes widened, his crow’s feet expanding like gracious wings at the edges, “Tron…is alive? That’s…that’s impossible.”

“He’s…he’s Rinzler, and Clu has him under his thumb,” Aseles pressed her hands to her forehead, her eyes shutting.

Flynn folded his hands and rested his chin on the back of them, his elbows prompted on the clear table, “Clu…playing all the angles.”

“What do we do, then?” Quorra asked, looking over to Flynn before turning to Sam who spoke.

“We leave,” Sam advised, his arms open out in question, “You said the portal that brought us here will close in eight hours the moment it’s opened. We don’t have much time now. If we don’t get out…we’ll be stuck here.” Flynn stayed quiet, Sam resisting from looking desperate, “So what are we waiting for?”

“He can’t,” Quorra defended, “Clu is after his disk.”

Aseles looked over to her, then to Flynn, “Your disk?”

He nodded, “Yes....It would give Clu the power to transport to the real world, which really isn’t a good idea. There’s nothing perfect about it; Clu would destroy everything in his wake.”

“But if we don’t get out of here....then we’ll be stuck,” Raine added, frowning.

“Dad...don’t you want to go home?” Sam looked at the elder man, trying to wise up the already ancient and tiresome father.

“Why do you think you’re here?” Kevin suddenly asked. He stood as he placed his hands on the clear table, his eyes wandering among it.

“What do you mean?” Sam asked.

“Clu wants us to go, to head for the portal together. He added a new piece to change the game, and with you, he got more than he ever wanted!” Kevin declared. His eyes shot to Aseles, “What did Clu tell you?”

Aseles swallowed, “He didn’t say…he wanted…” Aseles stood and stretched her hand out, and her keyblade bundled in pixels. It stretched with a blasting light, glittering gently as she laid it down on the table. Quorra and Sam stayed in placed, but Flynn headed right over, and stood beside Aseles.

“Clu wanted this?” Flynn reached with timid fingers, but the tips pressed onto the cold neck of metal, and traced along the head of the weapon. “What does it do?”

Aseles tried to minimize the list, “I think….Clu wanted it to unlock something. But it might that he also wants to use it to open the portal to your world. And…..”

“And?” Flynn looked over, Dimitri and Raine now staring at Aseles carefully.

She sighed, scratching her cheek, “He wanted it in exchange for Tron.”

“And _there_ it is,” Dimitri complained loudly, throwing his arms up into the air, “There’s no point in sticking around anymore, Aseles. Even if you stuck with his deal, he wouldn’t have given you the Tron guy. How gullible can you be?”

“Listen, if you wanted to sign up as my mother, the slot’s not open,” Aseles lifted her keyblade off the table, and pointed it to Dimitri directly, “You may not know Tron, but he’s my friend.”

Dimitri cut around the bend of the table, standing in front of Aseles now and leering down to her, “Friend or not, I’m not going to risk my ass for the chance of being stuck in here for eternity. You make sacrifices, you leave him to save your skin! You don’t have to save everyone!”

Aseles’ eyes constricted, the middle of her throat burning, “Then I should have left you in Olympus.” Something snapped in Dimitri, and the two were suddenly gripping at each other, Aseles trying to kick him off while he gripped her arms and slammed her into the ground. The chairs beside them toppled over and shattered into hundreds, Sam, Quorra and Raine rushing over to separate the two. Aseles grunted, lifted off the ground by Quorra who brushed the glass off of her back while the brunette inhaled erratically. Sam and Raine held Dimtiri back, whose eyes had taken a vicious, storming turn, veins and sharp edges encasing his hands and jaw.

“We should have left you in that room, then! And told Leon to fetch you himself!” Dimitri snarled out. Sam locked Dimitri’s arms in a tight hold. Aseles swallowed gently, fixing her bangs from their tussled formation.

“Get a grip!” Sam called out, tossing Dimitri back, making him stagger to keep balance.

Raine pressed her hands in front of Dimitri’s chest, her head looking anxiously between him and Aseles, “Fighting like this won’t get us anywhere.”

“Neither will it favor us if we head straight for the portal,” Kevin cut in, his back facing the group now, “The only way to win Clu’s game is to not play.” He strode across the lit floor, and entered the corridor of the chambers Aseles had come out from. Sam sighed, exasperated while clutching the back of his head. He stared out to the patio of the loft, a hand rubbing his face roughly.

“This is wrong…this is wrong,” he quoted to himself.

“I believe...you should consider your father’s wisdom,” Quorra replied after a few silent moments.

“I am...it bothers me how he doesn’t see it,” Sam muttered out furiously, his cheekbones lit on his face. “If we get to the portal…I could remove Clu in a single keystroke…”

“I don’t believe we should sit around and wait for this thing to close,” Dimitri began again, having calmed down from his impulsive episode. Aseles didn’t dare to look at him, moving her posture away to stand a good distance away from the group. Her arms crossed protectively in front of her chest, unsure of Dimitri’s train of thought now. He was fine in the room with her, and now he almost jabbed his elbow in her throat; it might be due to the fact she…basically gave the idea of leaving Dimitri in his dead world. She shook the thought out, feeling the retort was perhaps more malicious than she intended for it to come out- no, it was.

“None of this is a good idea…” Quorra departed from the group, and headed her way to the corridor as well, now leaving a perplexed Sam, and an overwrought trio of keyblade wielders.

“Now what?” Sam breathed out strongly, craning his neck up briefly.

“We leave,” Dimitri answered clearly, “Aseles, let’s go.” She didn’t move, her teeth gritting from the lack of options she had right now. If they left….if they didn’t save Tron-        

“I’m sorry Aseles, but I’m agreeing with Dimitri on this one. We can’t stay in here for long.” Raine paced around the floor of splattered glass, placing her hand on Aseles’ shoulder, “We have to go….I’m sorry about your friend.”

Aseles looked over, her hands in tight clubs, “If we leave Tron, there is a chance that the computer system will _not_ recover at home. Without Tron, there’s no point of going back.”

At that exact moment, the door of a room opened, and Aseles listened to the dashing boots, revealing Quorra. Her eyes flashed to the gang, holding something in her folded hands. She smiled lightly to Sam, standing in front of him and lending him the small, rounded metal sheet with trickling blue veins leading to its center. He looked at her.

“Zeus can help you get to the portal,” Quorra nodded, “This is his sector, it will lead you to him.”

“Quorra...thank you,” Sam nodded firmly. “I won’t let you guys down.” He then turned to the three, “Are we headed out or what?”

“Yeah...we’re going,” Aseles nodded, ignoring Raine and Dimitri as she passed them, heading to the garage.

“I’m very sorry, Aseles,” Raine rushed to walk next to her, but Aseles didn’t bother to argue, knowing Dimitri was watching her intently from behind.

“It’s important to get you guys out of here. I have no other choice now.”

MOMENTS LATER:

The lightning clouds towering the sky roared and thundered, the ash and dirt beneath the dune buggy kicking back from the vehicle’s accelerating speed. Dimitri maneuvered the wheel again as Raine sat on the front seat beside him, Sam and Aseles in the back seats. Her eyes captured the deserted terrain, feeling the heavy tractions of conflictions tearing and stretching her limbs and heartstrings. The things Dimitri have told her and struck a nerve at her, and she felt bothered by the fact that she was feeling lost again. Lost with no direction of Sora, Donald and Goofy, in a trance she couldn’t disrupt from.

“Are you alright?” Sam questioned lightly from beside.

 Aseles lifted her head to his tall posture, moving her flapping bangs out of her face, “Yeah…I guess.”

“You don’t seem alright...is it about your friend?”

“..Yeah, more or less,” Aseles nodded.  “How long haven’t you seen your father? It must’ve been…something to see him now.”

“Huh...long time,” Sam shook his head, rubbing the side of his neck as he looked at his feet. “Since I was a kid really.”

“You missed him a lot...huh?”

“You have no idea....” Sam smiled to himself, scoffing. “Seeing him now....I just want to go home with him. I just don’t understand why he can’t see that.”

“I think…he just cares about your safety. He’s been in here for so long, that’s all he knows how to do,” Aseles suggested. “I don’t know…I mean….”

“Yeah?” Sam tilted his head, his hand patting her shoulder briefly.

“I lost someone important. He didn’t want to come home with me either…when I found him,” Aseles exhaled deeply, shrugging absentmindedly, “I’m not sure what he was thinking. I think I know...but when I think about it at times, I always forget why he did it.”

“Maybe it’s a dad thing...” Sam hummed.

“Maybe....” Aseles looked out in the distance again, the wind slapping her hair back.

The car swerved sideways, Dimitri pushing the budded wheels upon the grid pavement. The watchtowers actively lit up as the sides, Dimitri hurriedly swerving the buggy in the darkest, connecting alleyways.

“Where is the place she sent us to?” Dimitri called from in front. Sam reached into his pocket, pulling out the disk Quorra had lent him.

“I think it’s up ahead, the big towe-“ The wheels screeched and burned across the road, Raine yelping as Dimitri skidded the car on its side. The abrupt drop of the hexagon ground prevented further travel, leaving the friends to rush out of the car. The ground caved from underneath, Aseles watching as the buggy shot into the dark shadows of the gap, no sound indicating the drop of the object.

“Who is that?” Sam questioned out loud, the trio seeing Hale taking front and center. Aseles immediately drew out her keyblade, standing defensively in front to fend off Hale’s sneer.

“Nice for you to drop by, and pay us a visit!” Hale exclaimed with a laugh, arms extended upwards toward the wary group. “Ready for Round Two, Aseles? I hope you’ve thought about my proposal from earlier.”

“Go, I’ll catch up,” Aseles curtly replied to Sam, her eyes lingering to Raine and Dimitri next, “Follow him, I’ll handle Hale.”

“Aseles,” Raine interjected.

Aseles shook her head, “We’re losing time for our way out. I’ll catch up. Go, _now_.”

“OH, so noble,” Hale enthusiastically clapped his hands together, making Aseles narrow her eyes to his general direction. She heard the others retreating their footsteps, now leaving her alone to deal with Hale. “Now….it’s this something?” the foe crooked a grin, trotting forward with arms extended out, eyes glittering from the lit edges of his outfit.

“Whatever it is you’re planning in this world, you can forget it!” Aseles defended, “You’re not getting away with anything, as long as I’m here!”

“You just don’t give up,” Hale sighed out, his neck swiveling like an entranced naked, eyes unavoidable to grip Aseles’ attention.

“Neither do you,” Aseles shouted out, minding briefly to the large crevice behind her. “Where is Tron?”

“So obvious you would still be willing to save him. I told Clu you would, but he thought I was flat out lying,” Hale rested his fingers against his face, chuckling lowly at Aseles’ distraught.

“You will tell me where Tron is,” Aseles ordered vividly, the edge of her keyblade sparking with lightning bolts.

“What if I don’t? You’re not in a position to be threatening me,” he smirked devilishly, holding his scruffy chin. “Oh? This is a surprise…” Aseles darted her eyes to the side, hearing the running steps toward her. It was Dimitri, his own weapon out with his front facing to Hale. He stood readily, eyes lingering to the older man’s humored expression.

“I told you to leave, I’ll deal with him,” Aseles fought.

“I didn’t say I was going to listen to you,” Dimitri countered, both their pair of eyes watching Hale carefully.

“Children, children!” Gale raised his arms casually at his side, his elbows bent. “The more the merrier, savvy? I’m sure we can work this out, and have ourselves a celebration. As a matter of fact, I brought my own group, and they’re just dying to dance with you!” The various weight of bodies dropped down from the sky, firefly wings curving back into the suits of the numerous guards that had landed and surrounded the bickering travelers. Dimitri gritted his teeth, standing directly beside Aseles, the two back to back to face the oncoming guards with released, surging batons.

“Now boy, it’s not polite to hog the girl all night,” Hale’s throat bubbled out a laugh, his hand lifting to extend out to the duo. “Gents, if you would be so kind.” The guards cut into a run, Aseles and Dimitri swinging their keyblades effectively across to block the oncoming attacks. Aseles ducked and skid to the side, ramming her keyblade into the first guard before rolling her back across Dimitri to uppercut the second. Dimitri maneuvered his head downwards in a swift curve, ramming his elbow into a helmet, the tip of his keyblade making contact to the spray a thunderous bolt of Darkness across the ground. The guards near the gap rolled back, hands too slow to grip the edge to save themselves from the impending doom below.

“Room for one more?” Aseles gasped, the back of her shirt tugged. She was hurled back from Hale’s swing, Dimitri slamming and sparking against Hale’s downpour of assaults. The remaining pixels of the last guard rolled across Dimtiri’s feet. He held his ground, and crushed the small, digital boxes underneath his boot, pushing Hale back to regain momentum. Dimitri dashed with thrusting keyblade, but once more, Hale had slid underneath him, the same he had done to Aseles.

“Dimitri!” He grunted out, dropping to the floor as Hale giggled, retracting his keyblade with a quick snap. The cut beside Dimitri’s body shined with dark red, his arms trembling to keep himself upright.

“My, what a pity,” Gale hummed, his lips frowning in disappointment, “And here I thought we could share the dance. No one likes a selfish snake.”

“Dimitri!” Aseles called out, standing up and threatening her keyblade to Hale, “Thunder!” The experienced fighter skillfully tossed his torso back, his feet now running to Aseles. She readied herself, finding herself wincing from the harsh slam of Hale’s barrage of attacks. She spun over and hit the ground, grunting as she tried to pick herself up from her side.

“Aseles, go!” Dimitri spat out, keyblade shaking in his palm. His free hand clutched the signature wound Hale gave him.

“I can’t leave you!” Aseles shook her head, unsure if she had yelled or whispered her statement.

“Aseles, leave, now!” Dimitri argued back, “This is my fight!”

Hale looked between the two, sporting a curious tilt of his head, “Isn’t this a change of pace? You’re not looking so good bleeding out like that.”

“Shut up and pay attention!” Dimitri growled out. Hale, however, walked straight to a backing Aseles. “No, stop!”

“Haah!” Aseles cried out, feeling her side kicked once, her lungs quaking to retrieve the air she had lost. Her hair was splayed across the ground, her eyes glaring to the man who pressed his foot on top of her side. She squirmed viciously, trying to remove the boot that was now slammed against the side glass of her helmet, pressing against her. She felt the cold sensation of metal and steel, the floor almost wanting to absorb her skull.

“I said let go of her!” Dimitri slammed the head of his keyblade to the ground, his eyes never leaving the wielder who stood on top of her.

Hale suddenly smirked, his arm resting on the bent knee that pressed on top of Aseles, “What’s this? Hmm…? You fond of this girl?”

“She has nothing to do with our fight!” Dimitri quickly cut in, his eyes cutting away from Aseles. She remained perfectly still, her fingers trembling against Hale’s boot, trying to hold the pressure off from her crushed helmet. She kicked and tensed her legs and hips, her breath erratic under the smothering metal and glass.

Hale chuckled, shaking his head lightly, “You do! What an exciting realization.” Dimitri remained incredibly lifeless, his eyes holding a raging, burning lake, a swirl of green and brown creating a deadly concoction of vigor. His palms radiated with something dark, but Aseles couldn’t point it out from her blurred vision. She was starting to feel the immense pressure of Hale’s foot, the edges of her eyes burning.

“Pitiful girl,” Hale scoffed, humming softly, “I must certainly say, I’ve heard much more than what you have showed me. I’m disappointed, Aseles. What a shame it must be, to be banished by the one and only Yen Sid…” Aseles’ eyes were now flooding, her lungs resisting the urge to release her painful whimpers. “See here boy, you give me what I want, and I will-“

The air sliced in half, the tense air broken by the sound of Hale’s agonizing scream. The heavy weight on Aseles’ face withdrew, and she heavily inhaled the air. The pieces of crushed glass flew around her, spots trying to overflow her view. She felt her body picked up, her feet nearly flying across the floor with her waist locked in an arm. She looked back from her run, seeing Hale’s face was enveloped in a foggy, dark-navy mist, a gash running from the bottom of his chin to the top of his forehead.

“You little bastard!” Hale cawed out after, his voice growing distant.

“Keep running!” Dimitri encouraged her from her left side. She did as she was told, and was now sprinting on her own with Dimitri keeping great pace. “Straight ahead! Turn! Right! Keep going!”

After what seemed like fifteen minutes, Aseles slammed her back against the shadowed wall, her chest heaving greatly with her entire body burning. Her arms and legs tingled, a thousand pricking thorns rising and cutting into her flesh. Her eyes flickered to stay open, her throat having swallowed a metal beam, tasting harsh iron. She winced when her fingertips brushed her cheek, already knowing it was bruised and cut.

“Next time, listen….to…me,” Dimitri gasped out, his hand slapping to his face, eyes shut.

“I w-wasn’t going to….leave yo-“ she backed up swiftly, seeing Dimitri punched his hand to the wall, his eyes glaring down to her.

“Why do you keep doing this? What is it that you’re trying to prove?” Dimitri whispered lowly, towering boldly in front of her. “When I tell you to run, you run. What was so hard about that?”

“You know, for someone constantly calling _me_ stupid, you would think you would know when _you_ say something stupid,” Aseles crossed her arms, stomping her foot down.

Dimitri’s eyes rolled excessively around, giving her the most deadpanned expression that would put both Donald and Leon to shame, “Say the one who told us to leave her behin-”

“Listen to me carefully,” Aseles jerked her hand forward, her finger digging into Dimitri’s jaw. He fixated his stare to her, her eyes glued to his. “You’re in a team now, so whatever lone-wolf bullshit you have lodged into your mind, it’s time to snuff it out. As a team, we need to work together, and we don’t leave one another to be by themselves unless _I_ order it. Don’t think you’re the strongest or smartest, because I worked myself to be just that. So, _listen_ to me _very_ carefully Dimitri-“

Aseles clutched the front of Dimitri’s suit, craning his neck down to glare at him directly in proper height range, “I’ll suck up whatever dignity or patience I have left, but there’s no way I’m going to let _you_ stick around if you think you’re on some higher tier than _me_. I’m the boss. _My_ team, _my_ rules. Is that clear?” Dimitri said nothing, lifting his head back up when Aseles had let go of him. She whirled around, swallowing roughly, “…I’m….sorry for what I said earlier. I shouldn’t have brought it up.”

Silence lingered, Aseles able to feel her lungs expand gently, then close and wrap tenderly within her chest. She reached up again, wincing gently of the green bump that had formed along her cheek and temple.

“….Here…” Aseles looked to her right, seeing a small potion was laid out, Dimitri’s fingers holding the short neck of it like pincers. She took it gently, looking beside to see Dimitri walk toward the edge of the sidewalk, his eyes scanning down the street in both directions. She uncorked the potion and drank it in one gulp, sighing at the cool bubble discharging around her injured cheek and side.

“They headed to the sector,” the raven-haired teen faced the downtown street, several programs running from a certain area of interest. “No doubt they ran into trouble.”

“Then let’s go,” Aseles nodded, running down the street with Dimitri easily keeping pace beside her.

At least they had come to some terms….for now.


	19. Fragments

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Well this is going along swimmingly isn't it? I'm completely abusing my summer break to get this finished quickly, so my only concern is giving you guys good content with this fast-paced updating. Thank you greatly, truly for being so patient and supportive, because I can feel the insanity beginning to creep up in the back of my head. 
> 
> This is a short chapter, but I wanted to end it here. We'll go back to our 20 pages hopefully in the next chapter, so stay tuned!
> 
> Sincerely,  
> -Keys

The group had hit a roadblock from Raine’s input when they had arrived at the base of the club. Sam’s negotiation with the program running the place had hit betrayal, Quorra and Flynn having to rescue Sam and Raine from the infiltrating guards of Clu’s throng. Flynn’s disk was gone, and an unconscious Quorra was absent of a left arm. It was a straight sprint to the portal, the regrouped team catching a ride on the Solar Sailor that was nearby.

It was a machine much different than Aseles had remembered in the earlier stage of the Grid; a narrow and horizontally stretched platform with cargo, much like some high-tech, lit train. It was at least a story high, the team walking up to the top platform to view the wide, dark sky. In the very front, leading the enormous object were four spread petal-shaped curves, the center grappling at the beam of light that connected to the far end vertically facing the sky. The ticket to freedom didn’t seem so far away.

Standing in the intersection of the top platform, Sam set Quorra on the ground, her opened eyes facing the misty and gloomy exhausts painting the skies. Aseles watched carefully with Sam on her left side, and Raine and Dimitri standing beside her. Flynn and Sam were kneeling around Quorra, Flynn having removed her disk and inspecting the contents of it.

“How are you going to fix her arm?” Raine asked, genuinely concerned. Whatever happened in the club, Raine got a beating out of it too, coming out with a bruised arm and a cut across her shoulder.

“This is why I love technology,” Kevin began as he turned the disk sideways, a display of blue, lit intersections crossing and tangling like webbed strings. Small dots of illuminated blue vibrated gracefully in rhythm in the confined cylindrical shape. Aseles wasn’t sure what Flynn was looking at exactly, but the man was advanced in his technology, and moved around the dataspace like it was second nature with the tips of his fingers.

“This is why I wanted to share this with the world. Medicine wouldn’t be needed, and disease would be history. Every idea of a man...in just a disk,” Kevin replied. The doppelgänger of Quorra’s face changed to the formation of a double helix turning clockwise. Aseles watched Kevin pry his fingers within the figure leisurely, plucking an orange strand from the rest of the blue. It pulled out and curled, suddenly fluttering the next second as Kevin let it go, the orange butterfly flying off the Sailor.

“That’s incredible,” Sam managed to say, his father shutting off the display of the helix. “But...how? I mean...we can’t do that...unless she’s...”

“She’s an ISO,” Kevin nodded. “The last one..” He leaned as Sam held Quorra on her side gently, the disk turning and reattaching itself onto her. Sam laid her back properly down, the stump on Quorra’s shoulder regenerating in extending pixels; her arm was being rebuilt again.

“Look at that,” Kevin smiled as he reached into his pocket, pulling out a small vial and handing it to Sam, “Give this to her when she wakes up.” He then stood, patting Sam’s back, “You’re old man is going to be knocking on the sky...and listening to the sound.”

The elder man walked off down the narrow path, and seated himself in a meditation position before becoming very still.

“Your father is...really something, Sam,” Aseles replied, quirking a smile.

“Yeah...I guess so,” Sam returned the smile, sitting patiently and looking over at Quorra.

“How you feeling, Raine?” Aseles instigated to her blue-haired companion.

“I’m alright....just...nervous,” she replied, wrapping her arms around her bent legs, having taken a seat beside Sam. “Hope we make it out.” On cue, Dimitri turned his back to the group, and made his way across the slim platform, standing with arms crossed on the metal railing . Aseles looked over to him briefly before turning away, looking at Quorra again.

“Did you guys fight again?” Raine whispered gently, grabbing Sam attention.

“We….came to a temporary compromise,” Aseles replied, “Until we get out.”

“He sounds like he’s more trouble than he’s worth,” Sam rested his stretched arms back, prompting him up lazily from behind. “Does he have something against you?”

Aseles looked over again to Dimitri, sighing heavily, “Probably but…I  haven’t been nice either. It’s weird.”

“Then why don’t you go try talking to him?” Raine suggested, making Aseles crook her mouth questionably.

“I don’t know what I would even ask him. I doubt he’ll answer me honestly,” she paced a bit around, unable to seat herself in between Sam and Raine. She was thinking too much, and in all honesty, she was getting anxious to arrive at the portal as well. “He already makes it a burden that he had to come get me with you…”

Raine cleared her throat, her fingers reaching to tangle themselves in her long, blue locks, “Actually….” Aseles raised a brow to her, making Raine swallow gently, “Dimitri…was the one who suggested to come and get you.”

“….What?” Aseles blinked, incredulously stunned of her statement. “He told me Leon told him to…”

“Well…Leon was going to send Axel, but he wasn’t around in the U.S.S. when we got there. Dimitri volunteered, but Leon…he didn’t want to get him into any danger. So I came along with, to make sure he wasn’t…alone…” Aseles eyes widened, her chest exhaling of the…sudden news. Her eyes looked over her shoulder, and they met Dimitri who was too preoccupied with the horizon in the distance, his dark hair highly contrasting against the lit atmosphere around him. He had…volunteered?

“That’s….no, why would he?” Aseles cut back to a flustered Raine.

Sam hummed, his head tilted to look up to her, “Maybe he’s not as bad as he makes himself to be.” Aseles felt her shoulders rising, her fingers curling into anxious fists. She eyed the ground suspiciously, as if it held the answer to her doubts. “Go talk to him,” Sam advised one last time.

Aseles found herself moving along platform, her hand gripping onto the opposite rail. She was standing near him, his back not turning to look at her. She speedily considered Raine who was edging her on, the bottom of her face concealed by her sky hair. Aseles slumped her shoulders, throwing her head back in a whiny manner. She sucked up whatever hesitant feelings were roaming in her stomach, and stood up straight. She opened her mouth, but a different voice had called out.

“Aseles?” She looked over, seeing Flynn moved his face back forward, his hand rest on his bent knee after motioning her over. She exhaled sharply, all her confidence dropped as she sluggishly passed Dimitri, shrugging over to a confused Raine. Aseles cleared her throat, but sat when Flynn indicated her to sit next to him.

“Sorry to kill your mojo,” Flynn chuckled lightly.

“Uh- it’s not- it’s fine, don’t worry,” Aseles rubbed her cheek, bringing her knees to her chest. She looked over to Flynn, “Did you want to talk to me?”

“We’re drawing closer to the portal, and I wanted to thank you,” Flynn smiled, gazing forward. “I know your mission was to find Tron; you didn’t have to bring Sam, but you did. I didn’t want to lose him again..”

Aseles nodded gently, looking ahead with him, “It’s okay…I was being kind of selfish earlier. I…was putting my friends’ lives in jeopardy, for someone who didn’t even recognize me.”

“I don’t think Tron has forgotten,” Flynn answered, “You can’t erase memories; you merely misplace them, or have to be reminded of them.”

“I guess….the concept of memories, never understood them,” Aseles rested her chin on her knees, her hands stroking the front of her lower legs. “I hope he’s alright then. I just feel helpless, knowing he’s under Clu’s watch.”

“Clu was programmed to make the perfect system; it’s my fault, I was the one who taught him that,” Flynn frowned, regaining Aseles’ attention directly to him, “If only I had known, maybe things could have been different. I was in such an egotistical height, I didn’t think of the consequences after…”

“At least you know now,” Aseles nodded in agreement, a heavy scowl running across her lips.

“Is something the matter?” Flynn asked.

“Oh….it’s just….” Aseles rubbed her shoulder, facing forward, “My dad- um, Ansem, he was into technology, like you. I never knew him…only his accomplishments, the good things, the bad. I…never really got to know him like a dad. When I met him, he said he was my dad…but…”

“Mhmm,” Flynn waited, watching Aseles rub her face fully with her hands.

“I-It didn’t feel like he was. He was never there; how was…I supposed to know what having a dad felt like?” she sniffed, pressing a hand to her mouth, trying to prevent her lips from starting to shake. “How was I supposed to know how to feel at that time when I had known him in less than five minutes?”

“Is he…?” Aseles shook her head. “That’s rough, kiddo.”

“I don’t remember much…I don’t remember anything when I was younger. Someone messed me up, a-and I don’t know how to fix myself. Leon, Leon is the only true dad I ever had, e-even though he-isn’t my biological dad.”

“Then, whoever this Leon is,” Flynn placed his hand on the top of Aseles’ back, brushing her shoulder firmly, “He’s lucky…to have a daughter like you.” Aseles let the streams flow down her cheeks, her hand brushing them off after she knew she was done. She sniffed back whatever rough emotion was threatening to surface, and looked to Flynn, “Sam is lucky…to have a father like you.”

“Hmm…let me see your disk,” Flynn replied after a considering moment, withdrawing his palm.

Aseles blinked, “What for?”

“You said you don’t remember; is it due to some sort of medical condition?”

Aseles reached back, un-clocked her disk from her back, and handed it to Flynn, “I’m not entirely sure, honestly. After I got my weapon, the keyblade that I showed you, I don’t remember anything beforehand.”  Flynn took her disk in her hand, and began fiddling with some slots and buttons stationed around the ring. He held it horizontally, but nothing happened.

“That’s….strange,” Flynn narrowed his eyes, eyebrows scrunching together. “I cannot access your graph.”

“That’s…that’s not normal is it?” Aseles shivered uncomfortably, her hands rubbing her knees. Flynn said nothing, beginning to tinker and motion her disk in several directions, attempting to access it. Suddenly, the cylinder shape above her disk burst, making Aseles narrow her eyes to the pixel-form of her head…sleeping.

“Interesting…” Flynn blinked, enthusiastically pressing some graphs and buttons that formed along the rim of her disk. His finger pressed onto a sideways triangle, and a muffled set of voices began to speak.

_“Why must you do this, Ansem? This is not what we thought would happen!”_

“A-Ansem?” Aseles jerked up, kneeling beside Flynn. The bar along the rim of the disk continued to stretching, the voices playing.

_“It’s for her own good. It is for the best.”_

_“The best for everyone, or best for you?”_

_“In time, in time you’ll forgive me, Jaqueline.”_ Aseles eyes broke open, her thoughts surging full throttle at the mention of the name. Stan’s…Stan’s mother?!

_“No,I never will. And either will she. If she were here….she would never forgive you.”_

_“Program is ready for synchronization. Memory disk is at full capacity. Error, cannot exceed capacity. Must load new disk. New program rejected. New program is incompatible with subject. Error. Error. Subject in critical condition. Subject unresponsive. Subject unresponsive. Subject unresponsive-subject prone to termination. Subject in critical condi- Subject is neutralized. Sleep mode activated.”_

The cylinder shape warped back into the middle of the disk, Flynn’s eyes blinking along the surface of the slick steel. Aseles sat back down on her rear, her eyes motioning across the floor, feeling the static increase in her eardrums. 

“Did that sound…familiar to you?” Flynn asked a moment after.

Aseles shook her head, swallowing roughly, “No…but I know who was talking.”

Flynn motioned his hand over, and slid the disk back onto Aseles’ back, “It may be confusing, but take that with you Aseles, with the utmost care. Take that with you, and see what you can find-“ An approaching machine cut the view of the sky and portal, Flynn standing as he hurriedly gripped onto Aseles’ hand to help her up.

“Get below!!” Kevin’s voice bellowed, “MOVE!” He motioned Aseles to run as she did so, soon meeting up with Dimitri.

“What the hell is that?” he asked as they regrouped with the awaken Quorra, Sam and Raine.

“This isn’t supposed to be here,” Flynn warned as they all huddled in the spaces of the cargo area, peeking up to the massive rooftop they were now entering in. The flying mechanism was outlined with crimson, inside appearing mostly like a train station. The machine locked into place, and the bundle of cargo they leaned on lit up, Raine jumping back with Sam catching her before she fell over from fright. Aseles peered into the closest cargo box, seeing multiple rows of heads, the programs unmoving in a trance.

“What is this...?” Quorra’s eyes widened, her hand plastered on the glass of the one nearest to her.

“He’s building an army....” Sam strained out quietly.

“This way,” Kevin beckoned with a hand, walking down to the middle of the hidden platform, his eyes darting across the forks between the containers. The others followed closely, with Dimitri in the rear as lookout. Aseles froze when she heard the set of footsteps clinking on top of glass, and she peered over to see Rinzler was headed in their direction.

“Oh crap,” Aseles slammed her back against the wall, gripping both Dimitri and Raine by the arm and tugging them in the space between her, Sam, Flynn and Quorra to hide them.

“Rinzler’s coming,” Aseles whispered out urgently, grabbing everyone’s responsiveness. The group held still, but Aseles was already tugging her hand into Dimitri’s pockets, tugging out the two potions from his grasp.

“What are you doing?!” Dimitri hissed, gripping her wrist after she had supplied herself.

“All of you head to the portal. I’ll catch up, but if it’s not open, I’ll wait for you to reopen it for me, alright?”

“Aseles, Aseles wait!” Raine and Sam whispered after, but Dimitri had tugged her back out of view, letting Aseles dash forward and into view of the large platform of the station. Her eyes shot to Rinzler who had spotted her, and was skillfully running across the cargo tops, headed straight to her. Aseles shot the others quick glance, and shot out her keyblade in possession.

“Thunder!” The bolts banged in quick succession, Rinzler tossing his body overhead, creating an arc with a kick of his legs to dodge the attack. Aseles wasted no time in getting her chance, and cut into the narrow space between two buildings, rushing her way across the open space. She looked back from the ascending ramp, seeing Rinzler was catching up, pulling out his two disks in hand. Aseles maneuvered and slid across the corner, ducking her head as the disks missed their mark, embedded into the hard material. With heaving breath, Aseles stumbled across the open panel, her eyes scanning down to the great drop; she had reached the edge of the plane-like machine, her head darting around to look at the oncoming Rinzler. The wind lashed and flogged her hair around Aseles’ face, but she was firm on the ground, keyblade gripped tightly in hand. She faced the possessed Tron.

“Tron!” Aseles called out, teeth gritting for the impending battle, “I know you’re in there. If I have to knock your memories into you, then I will!” Rinzler paused in his stride, and readied himself with legs parted. He charged, Aseles ready.

He kicked himself in the air, spinning horizontally as he tossed a disk full throttle. Aseles batted it away with a strong swing, and tossed her keyblade over her head. Rinzler towered her, but she held her place and rammed her keyblade upwards. Rinzler slid away, and deflected Aseles’ continuous strikes and swings. She dug her keyblade downward, sparking the ground with a wave of electricity. Rinzler leapt up, dodging the current, and make a striking dash. He kicked across, Aseles defending her sides, and slammed her arm guard in front of her face, bouncing back Rinzler’s disk.

“You have to snap out of it!” Aseles shouted, slamming her keyblade in tune with his flinging arms and kicks. “You’re my friend, Tron!” She slid back, regaining her balance. She regarded to the heavy mist below, the open sky her doomed sentence. She prepared for Rinzler’s attack when he charged, but the combatant leapt back, saving himself from being hit by a slicing weapon. Aseles turned her head, seeing Dimitri’s keyblade had struck and stood beside her, having blocked and warned Rinzler’s attack. Behind him was Raine, the two sprinting to cover Aseles at her sides.

“What are you guys doing here?” Aseles exhaled out, gripping her keyblade again.

“Did you think I was going to listen to you?” Dimitri tilted his head to her, a small smirk rising. Aseles stared to him, but she scoffed, shaking her head.

“We’re a team, and a team sticks together!” Raine encouraged, holding her keyblade at the side, both hands clutching the handle. All three faced Rinzler, and tackled forward when he broke into a run.

The dark figure fended all three, but Aseles noticed he was beginning to lose his momentum; he could not block Raine’s ice attacks from freezing his disk, having him repeatedly having to slam it to break the frost. Dimitri took the front lead, more aggressive and brutal in his approach, and more than Aseles had anticipated. His blows were powerful enough to emit a mist of Darkness around the keyblade’s tip, a hungry control heated in Dimitri’s eyes. Rinzler’s second disk was knocked away, Aseles sliding underneath Dimitri’s arm to press her keyblade against Rinzler’s chest and toss him to the ground. She leaned over him, both hands pressed against the keyblade with Dimitri stopping his foot on top of Rinzler’s foot, preventing him from squirming away. Aseles heard the seething groan within the helmet, and she bore her eyes through the dark glass.

“Tron, I know you’re in there!” Aseles stated. Rinzler remained motionless, neck strained to stare up at her. She shook her head, a sigh escaping, “You have to remember. Remember me? Donald, Goofy? Sora, you have to remember Sora-“

“Watch out!” Raine cried out, but Dimitri was quicker. His arm snared around Aseles, and he pulled her off, releasing Rinzler. The three stumbled back from the oncoming keyblade, and faced the new threat.

Hale’s constricted face augmented the large scar Dimitri had given him, a navy, cracked line carved onto his tanned, stone skin. His malicious eyes caught onto Aseles, scanned to Raine, then laid onto Dimitri. Dimitri remained in his posture, keyblade out and clearly unmoved of Hale’s hostile approach.

“You actually think he’s going to remember someone like you?” Hale hissed out, marching forward. His hand gripped onto the keyblade beside the struggling Rinzler, and picked it up with a quick swipe. He held it at the base of its neck, the weapon snapping in half, yet still formed in his grasp. The shattered pieces floated at the edge of his fingers, a dark fog tangled and swarming to create a long, speared lance turning the keyblade into dust. It was coated in strong, voltage currents, shining the shadows of Hale’s face with bright purple.

“I think you all owe me a dance!” Hale shouted viciously, and shot forward across the ground. Aseles, Dimitri and Raine split apart, the spear cutting into the ground and sending a spiral of bolts behind him. Raine deflected it with a swing, but her eyes widened when Hale was right in front of her, and sent a flying kick to her. She rolled across the floor, hugging her keyblade tightly.

“Raine!” Aseles called out.

Hale turned to her, “You’re next!” Dimitri cut down on his tackle, keyblade and lance pinned in the center of the field.

“GO!” Dimitri ordered, but Aseles was already dashing to Raine’s side, helping her up with potion in hand.

“Why do you meddle in what isn’t yours?!” Hale raged, taking Dimitri’s keyblade to the ground. With both heads pinned, Hale kicked himself to spin like a top, a sonic boom bursting afterwards. Dimitri was flung back, hitting the ground onto his side. Hale rushed over to him, repeatedly stabbing his lance down to catch Dimitri’s head.

“Over here!” Aseles’ flaming keyblade whirled into view, knocking Hale back from Dimitri. The man recovered, but now reverted to being on the defensive, Aseles battering her keyblade against his spear profusely. Combined surges of bolts rained across, and pierced to delve into the ground.

The platform suddenly shifted, Aseles waving her arms to regain balance. Her eyes widened to see her section of the floor was splitting, and dropping down. She swiftly aimed to push Hale off, and began to sprint to the edge. The platform was slanting, and she gasped out when she felt her leg gripped, and fell on her front. She looked back, seeing Hale was tugging at her ankle.

“If I go down, so do you!” Hale growled in fierce determination, his lance pulling up, ready to stab into her thigh. The rush of a dark orb barely missed Aseles head, and she ducked and shut her eyes when it collided straight onto Hale’s wrist, making the man drop his lance. It tumbled and rolled off the edge of the waning floor, Aseles taking her chance of freedom to scale up the tilting floor. Hale cried out beneath her, and she leapt from the very edge of the ground, slamming her hands and intertwining them with Dimitri’s. She gasped from the fierce wind knocked out of her, but he tugged her up easily, grunting as they both made it to the top floor. Once there, Aseles and Dimitri peered down to the heavy mist below, unable to hear Hale’s distant cry from their height.

“Everyone okay?” Raine rushed over, her eyes hesitant to look over the side, and instead remained with Aseles.

“Yeah...thanks,” Aseles wiped her brow, but stood vigilant when she saw Dimitri and Raine facing forward again. Rinzler had gotten to his feet, and behind him was an calmly infuriated Clu.

“More trouble brewing on my ship? I simply won’t tolerate it,” Clu chuckled tensely, standing beside Clu properly.

Aseles inhaled, keyblade out and pointed to Clu, “By the look on your face, I say someone already got their hands on a certain disk-“

“I’m going to create the perfect world!” Clu barked, his arm shooting out to the trio, “I offered you a deal, and you decided to go against it. Rinzler, depose of them.” Rinzler, regained of his earlier condition, stepped forward and stood a few yards away from Clu. The trio of wielders were now on the offensive, Aseles swallowing whatever restraint she had left; he was going to eliminate them under command.

“Do it now!” Clu demanded. Unexpectedly, Rinzler relaxed his position, disks still charged. He, instead turned to face Clu, his back now to Aseles. Aseles’ eyes widened, Dimitri and Raine exchanging glances.

Clu grew enraged, “Rinzler!”

His accomplice took a protective stance, holding his disk readily, “I fight...for the Users.” Aseles’ mouth parted, her keyblade immediately dropped down of the sudden turn of event.

Clu was not having any of it, “You will obey me, Tron!”

“I will obey no one who tries to hurt my friends!” Tron shouted once more.

“Guards!” Clu ordered out, a whole bundle of guards running from the sides, and headed straight for the group. Tron reached up with disk in hand, and slid the hot energy across the back of his helmet. With a quick and hauling swipe, the helmet he had was ripped in half, and he tossed it aside. Aseles dashed her way to stand beside him, and her heart leapt to see it was indeed her old friend, having aged a bit with his dirty-blond hair free and tussled.

“Aseles, thank you,” Tron graciously bowed his head.

“I’ve got your back,” Aseles grinned, keyblade in hand.

“So do we!” Raine stood on Aseles’ side with Dimitri at the end. The guards ran to close range, and Tron let out the first array of attacks, followed by Aseles and her gang. In a matter of moments, the ground was swimming and sliding with thousands of pixels. The disarray of distorted cries and groans filled the air, Aseles picking up her pace to deflect any batons and disks headed to Tron, reassured that Dimitri took care Raine. Finally the last guard was destroyed, Clu now alone and facing the group.

“You will regret crossing me,” Clu burrowed a devilish tone to his words, teeth clenched and almost snapping like a rabid animal. “I will have that keyblade.” He shot his arms open to his side, the lit grid ground burning a bright crimson. The battered pixels of the guards suddenly began to collect and storm, building around Clu.

The large and armored suit lifted Clu off the floor, his limbs engorged in the metal masses of two standing, platforms and arm cannons sheltered onto his shoulders. The pixel armor cuffed and locked around Clu’s chest, his height now tripled with overlapping plates across his shoulders and neck. Clu’s head and face was shielded by heavy glass, a threatening scowl glued on. 

“Are you serious?” Dimitri groaned loudly, straining to keep his vulgar words to a minimum level as it were.

“Move!” Aseles shouted, feet scurrying out of the way. A large blast of light charged and hit the floor, a smoking gap of ruined ground left in the wake of the attack. Clu whirled his cannon arm around, repeatedly shooting quick orbs with Aseles and Tron ducking for escape.

“Now, Raine!” Dimitri shouted, Clu’s eyes shooting around to the blue-haired teen. He didn’t register the Blizzard attack in time, his entire face coated in heavy ice. His movements became erratic, and plummeted orbs across the area. Tron bravely cut to head straight for Clu, both disks flung in quick succession, and sinking across Clu’s left arm. The cannon was pried open of the heavy weight, hundreds of pixels raining and swimming across Clu’s feet. His regular arm held a fist, but the other was precisely aiming at the fighters, the coat of ice melted away.

“Dimitri!” Aseles called out, the two running to each other, and Dimitri tucking his keyblade to his chest.

“Need a lift??” Dimitri skid to a halt, the neck of his keyblade catching Aseles’ feet. He swung around forcefully, and Aseles shot like a bullet, keyblade over her head. Clu swung his cannon arm around, but it was no match for her speed; she slammed her feet against the shoulders of the mecha-suit, and thrashed her keyblade repeatedly across the bulky, shoulder arm, and the hard glass covering Clu’s face.

“Aseles!” Raine called out. Aseles felt the sudden lift of the suit, and she struck her keyblade down onto Clu’s suited shoulder. Her body trembled when the suit slammed forward, knees bent with arms robustly swaying from side to side. She was shaken off, and rolled across the floor.

“Argh!” Clu shouted, Tron in hot pursuit in the front. His disks rammed into Clu’s chest, the mecha-suit dimming in power. Behind, Dimitri and Raine pointed their keyblades out, and a heavy Blizzard stormed and coated around the armed back. Dimitri finished the guard with an upward strike, causing the entire body to lift upward, and crash on Clu’s front.

“Our ride’s here!” Raine pointed, Aseles jolting her head back to see a commanded ship headed their direction, ready to circle around the stage.

“Time to catch it!” Aseles signaled, “Let’s go!”

“This ends here!” Clu abruptly rammed his cannon onto the floor, the air compressing at the high velocity of the shot. The group of four shouted as the section of ground suddenly gave way, the ground lopsided and dropping at a fast rate.

“Aseles, you have to go!” Tron shouted out, his hand gripping onto her upper shoulder to keep her steady.

Her eyes shook at his words, her head shaking automatically, “No, you’re coming with us!”

“My mission is to stop Clu! You must get to the portal!” Tron countered, “It’s been a pleasure being your friend.”

“Tron, no no!” Aseles gripped onto his arm, the ground now trembling and groaning of the heavy weight. Above, Aseles watched as Clu slammed his large foot onto the edge of the cut ground to severe its tie. The entire floor was now descending further, Clu recharging his cannon.

“Take this!” Tron morphed his disk into one, and handed it to Aseles. She timidly looked to it, then lifted her eyes back up to Tron who tugged her arm hastily, “You must protect your friends, as I will protect you!”

“T-There has to be another way!” Aseles retorted painfully, the edges of her eyes swimming.

“Clu!” Tron shouted, Aseles’ eyes the size of plates; Clu rotated his cannon around, and was now taking aim to Dimitri and Raine. Clu’s face was plastered with a fierce grin, Dimitri holding onto Raine who had lost her footing, the two holding fiercely onto the ledge.

“Save your friends, Aseles!” Tron pleaded, a hurtful atmosphere riling and plundering onto the brunette.

She gritted her teeth, but nodded, and took Tron’s disk in her hand, “I’ll always be your friend, no matter what happens!” She bolted in a sprint, her body launching itself against Dimitri, her arm snared around his, “Let go!”

“You sure about this?” Dimitri’s expression softened, gazing to Aseles recoiling tears.

“Let go!” Aseles locked her hand with his, and almost instinctively, Dimitri did what he was told, and the trio dropped from the edge. Aseles intertwined her fingers tightly into Dimitri’s, who in turn held Raine from around her waist. The trio screamed when the floor gave way, Aseles eyes tearing through the cold air to see Clu battling with a baton-wielding Tron above. The team hurdled into a fast descent, the dark stretch of sea below the blanket of chilly steam.

“Here he comes!” Aseles called out to both Raine and Dimitri, the three watching the piloted aircraft headed their way. The plane tilted downwards, passing the ground so they faced the backside of it. The rear window of the cockpit was pulled back, Sam standing with arm gripped at a hook armrest of his seat.

“Take my hand!” Sam leaned, Aseles extending her arm out. The ship lowered its speed, the two able to grasp onto one another. The ship picked up momentum, and began to lift, Raine screaming when the sea was headed straight for her. She shut her eyes, the tips of her feet barely grazing the top of the cold desert of water. The trio was towed into the cockpit, Sam closing the hatch with a satisfied grin.

“Nice of you to drop by,” Flynn commented from in front of the ship, Quorra laughing at his implied joke.

“Very funny,” Dimitri rolled his eyes, sitting up. Aseles shivered, hugging her head to relieve the tension in her lungs and shoulders. Her eyes lifted to the lone disk in her hand, and her eyes tore into the only remembrance of her friend. The cockpit grew quiet, the only audible sound Aseles’ strained inhales.

“Why….can’t I save anyone?” Aseles hugged the disk to her chest, and bowed her head over her curled knees. Her fingers dug into the fabric of her outfit, wanting to fuse the piece of metaled data into her chest. She felt the air hot and clouded, the icy guilt unable to cool her off. The riddled shame of Yen Sid’s words drowned her senses, and the lifted burden of her moral responsibilities were beginning to take a toll on her. What was she going to do…?

“That’s not true,” Raine timidly replied breathed out, scooting over to sit beside Aseles. She lifted her head, feeling the girl brush along her back, “You saved us. And for that…we’re truly grateful.” Dimitri scooted to Aseles’ other side, but he remained quiet, and instead viewed to the front window of the cockpit.

The moments passed quietly, the absent presence of Tron saddening Aseles the further they arrived closer to the pulsing portal in the distance. Her eyes looked to it when Dimitri nudged her lightly, but again he did not meet her gaze. She looked to him briefly, then looked down to the disk in her crossed lap. A small trickle ran up the base of her throat, and she pushed her palm against it to relieve the sensation off. Maybe….maybe Dimitri was right.

She didn’t have to save everyone, and how could she if they didn’t want to be saved? She tried…she tried so hard to save Ansem, to save Tron who in turn wanted to save others, to save….her. She was in situations where she was not in power, the powerful images of Demyx and Olympus rolling and tumbling the back of her eyes, triggering a sting that she had to shut her eyes, to try to repel all these awful feelings. What good was it trying to be the hero if it only brought suffering and self-doubt? She was no hero, no hero compared to someone like Sora. But he wasn’t here…it was all up to her to make the decisions, to follow some sort of guide no one had given her. She was…on her own.

What was right? What was the right choice then?

“He was a faithful friend until the end,” Kevin comforted out, making Aseles chest lift slightly.

The ship had docked at the base of the portal, Kevin, Sam and Quorra bringing the rear while Aseles, Raine and Dimitri strolled up the white staircase. At the end, the white beam breathed unevenly and endlessly to the sky, the end undetermined from the dark clouds.

“Almost!” Dimitri encouraged, stepping in tow with Aseles’ speedy pace. Raine jumped in place, her arms spontaneously wrapped around Aseles’ other arm. The trio ducked their heads around, and Aseles couldn’t honestly believe what had dropped between the group. Clu was blocking the narrow path to the portal, dividing her group from Sam’s.

“The cycles haven’t been kind, have they?!” Clu shouted to Flynn who had taken the lead.

“Nah, you don’t look so bad!” Flynn countered casually, making Clu tense in his place. He walked forward to Flynn’s direction. Aseles motioned her legs, but she was suddenly gripped from behind by Dimitri.

“This is between them,” Dimitri warned.

“We can’t just stand here! We have to do something!” Aseles argued, her eyes glancing back to the two men now standing a yard away from each other.

“You told me I had to create the perfect system!” Clu battled to his master. “I executed the plan!”

“The thing is, perfection is always in front of us, it always had been all the time!” Flynn pleaded, his arms outstretched toward Clu, “I didn’t know that, when I created _you_. For that, I’m sorry. I’m sorry, Clu-“ Kevin was thrown down with a single punch, his hand gripping onto the hard floor to prevent himself from slipping down.

“Dad!” Sam shouted, and propelled himself in an array of punches, catching Clu who remained solid on his stance.

“No, Aseles!” Dimitri locked Aseles in his grip, and began to drag her away, Raine looking mortified to the scene unfolding.

“Let go!” Aseles gritted her teeth, kicking violently. Quorra had managed to slid underneath the bridge, and landed precisely in-between Clu and Sam, Flynn still on the floor.

“CLU!” Kevin reminded loudly. “Remember what you came for!” Clu’s grin stretched, looking away from Quorra who was pushing Sam back toward the portal.

“Dad!” Sam shouted when Flynn was kicked onto his front, the disk free for Clu to grab.

“You did all this, for him?” Clu sneered, and flipped the disk sideways. However, the graph that arose in the invisible cylinder was not Flynn’s face…but Quorra’s. Clu’s eyes widened, Aseles following his gaze to Quorra who was now standing beside Sam, and holding out Flynn’s original disk to him. The bridge connecting between the two platforms had split, Clu leaping and catching the ledge.

“GO!” Flynn ordered out. “Take Quorra!”

“I’m not leaving you!” Sam interjected, his eyes begging for his father’s compliance to listen to his plea. The air drove to a slapping gale, Aseles having to squint her eyes to see everything unfolding.

“It’s what he wants, Sam,” Quorra strained to say. Sam’s eyes met her, and Aseles felt the terse, familiar memory unhinging her thoughts. Her eyes looked to Sam, then they moved over to Flynn who looked right to her. The exact same look, the same damn look of ancient eyes and curt stare. She knew…Flynn wasn’t going to change his mind.

_“This is not about us, it’s about the worlds.”_

“I c-can’t leave him, Quorra!” Sam fought, but Quorra continued to push him back, handing him the disk he unwillingly gripped onto.

_“You must let me follow my heart.”_

“He never left you, Sam,” Quorra hugged her arm around his waist, the entire group now fashioned into the rounded spot of the portal’s beam.

_“It is for the best.”_

“I-I can’t-“ Sam eyes shot to Aseles’, whose arm had gripped onto his upper one. Quorra, Raine and Dimitri watched her carefully, Aseles feeling the inner pot of her stomach churning and toppling all the hot contents into her other organs. She was drowning, she was choking on all the words that were coming out of her mouth.

“He will always love you, Sam,” Aseles lifted Tron’s disk to her chest, her other hand prompting up Sam’s elbow that held his father’s. “That will never change.” Sam’s jaw clenched, his cerulean eyes scanning the floor.

He inhaled firmly, and he nodded, holding Flynn’s disk with both hands, “Together…”

“Together.” Aseles and Sam lifted their arms up, and watched the hovering plates rise into the diminishing beam. A spark of energy rushed and propelled everyone’s hair upwards, Aseles exhaling of the heavy weight lifting off her shoulders. Aseles looked over across the bridge, seeing Flynn standing, his arms outstretched.

Kevin mouthed out, “Goodbye....kiddo.”

Aseles’ eyes jumped at the sight of Clu rising to his feet, his feet boosting him across the metal plate, hand snapping forward.

 “NO!” Aseles felt the air kicking around her, her grunt straining out from the fierce tug of Clu’s digits. They burrowed into her skin, and she screamed, feeling Dimitri and Raine trying to pull her back in, Quorra, wrapping an arm around Sam’s waist, the other tugging at Raine’s to aid her.

“Let go!” Aseles felt her skin being pulled, the cold wind flogging across her face, her eyes strained to the glaring Clu. A harsh whirlwind was dragging him back, generating to the single point where Flynn was standing. The elder man hesitated the force he was withdrawing when he saw Clu had latched onto her.

“I must create the perfect system!” Clu angrily spat out, digging Aseles out of the portal’s beam. “The keyblade is mine!!”

“One….two, three!” Dimitri hollered out, the entire group slamming their entire weight back, pulling Aseles entirely back in. Dimitri lifted his boot, and in a desperate attempt slammed the bottom of his boot against Clu’s face, jolting the clone out of his trance. Clu lost momentum, and Flynn took the chance, and reeled Clu backwards through the air. The beam heightened in energy, the sky exploding in a mixture of light and darkness. In a final flash, Aseles, Dimitri and Raine screamed, latching onto each other, their feet lifted off the ground and into a spiraling vortex. Spots of light brimmed wildly about, blinding Aseles, but strengthen her hold around Dimitri and Raine. The trio hurled backwards, and knocked them out.

 

………

 

………….

 

……..

 

….

_“Aseles….”_

_A voice……._

_“Aseles…..wake up……”_

_Her eyes flickered, looking into a color she couldn’t name, but one she recognized. She felt the fingers curl around her jaw, and lifted her fragile chin up. She blinked slowly, regaining a sense of feeling, her sense of feeling. Touch….she was touching her._

_“Hey…” A color of raspberry streaks, dark hair washing over her. Aseles opened her mouth, but no sound emitted._

_“You don’t have to say anything._

_Just know Aseles._

_Know something.”_

_A warm embrace, Aseles unable to hug her back._

_“Know that you don’t have to save me. Save yourself.”_

_………….._

_“Aseles, save yourself.”_

_………………………….._

_“Aseles, you are your own hero.”_

_………………………………………_

_“Aseles…..what are _____ for?”_

 

 

 

A bubble of colors was surrounding her closed eyelids, and the sound of someone calling her name was telling her to wake up. She grunted, feeling an arm embrace around her neck, a hand shaking her shoulder carefully.

“Aseles, wake up.”

“Leon...” Aseles mumbled, the normal colors of the room dropping in. Leon’s smile warmed her, along with a relieved and surrounding Yuffie, Kairi and Bella. She sat up, grunting while rubbing the back of her head. She looked beside and in front of her, seeing Raine and Dimitri sitting up, both rubbing their faces and heads.

“I feel so dizzy..” Raine commented lowly, rubbing her eyes briefly.

“Crap…” Dimitri groaned, rubbing the back of his shoulder. “That hurt like hell.”

“You’re all safe, that’s all that matters,” Leon sighed, brushing Aseles’ back. “Does anything hurt?” Aseles blinked, but instead of answering she reach into the pockets of her dress, and found what she was looking for. Her hand cautiously held the edges of the disk, and lifted it up to Leon. He took it gently, holding it between his thumb and forefinger.

“He….saved us,” Aseles replied slowly, “I think this will help us with the system.”

Leon nodded gently, “Thank you, Aseles. And to you two, as well.” His eyes glanced over to Dimitri and Raine. “You guys make…a pretty good team.”

“Um…” Raine hesitated, her eyes lingering between Aseles and Dimitri. The two were locked one to one another, until suddenly Dimtiri chuckled, shrugging.

“Yeah, I think so too….right, Boots?” Everyone’s darted to look to Aseles, and were legitimately surprised to see Aseles smile in agreement.

“We’ll have to see huh?” She held out her hand, and laid it across, hovering between the three of them.

Raine happily placed her hand on top of hers, “Absolutely.”

“Without a doubt,” Dimitri hummed in response, closing the top with his own palm.

“All for one?”

“One for all,” the two replied back, all three sharing a smile.


	20. Invasion

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Here we goooooo.
> 
> New threats, new drama, it's gonna get good. You're strapped in for the ride, too late to get out fellas. Hang on, it's going to be a bumpy ride.
> 
> Thanks for the reads and kudos!
> 
> Sincerely,  
> -Keys

FFW:

Tron’s last tribute to the User world was exactly what Cid and the town needed; the security system was running fluently and faster, secured with an extensive program with upgraded claymores to monitor the outside walls. It lessened the Committee’s burdening patrols; Axel, Zack, Cloud, Leon and Auron moved their attention to restoring the last repairs of the Market Place and Borough, and finally restored an old complex for Aseles’ new friends to live in. Bella had offered her the extra room, but Aseles denied it, being much preferred staying in the same house as before, with Kairi, Raine and Dimitri as roommates (the irony of it made Bella laugh, and Aseles blush a bit).

Over the past days, Aseles had distracted herself with attending Leon for building repairs and organization in the dataspace. Dimitri had taken the liberty of aiding Leon with several chores around the town, mainly with gummi ship repairs with Cid and guard-posting with Axel. Both traded positions to aid Raine in battlement, and together saw her magic stamina was growing immensely. She developed a more cheerful disposition with them, and well-rounded herself with Kairi and Aerith, as well as the other members of the Committee.

Training hours extended in the morning to the very night, Bella more than happy to throw a few rounds for practice, more likely if Dimitri were on the other end of her gun. He still held a defensive barrier around certain people, but Aseles was more prone to tolerating his crude humor than before. They trained together consecutively, went to go check in with Leon throughout various times of the day for reports and chores, and would always appear in the kitchen together eating a quick meal at the end of the day and in the mornings. She didn’t mind his company, or the silence that followed him. It was almost reassuring, settled and calm. He too was changing, even if it were subtle or minimal, only if she were the one seeing it.

The next day, the noon sun marked the end of her training session, and she waved Bella off who reunited with Zack and Cloud on the other side of the field. Raine and Kairi regrouped, Kairi handing Raine a potion to recover. Aseles wiped her forehead and neck with a towel, feeling hot despite her dress. She looked to the side to see Dimitri was approaching with Leon in the lead.

“Hey, would you mind doing me a favor?” Leon asked, holding out a large pouch to Aseles. “Can you give this to Jaqueline for me? It’s her pay for the work she’s done last week, and she forgot to pick it up before she left.”

For once, Aseles wanted to say no.

It wasn’t that she was dodging visiting Jaqueline since she got back, but more of the memory she had of Ansem. She knew-she recognized- the woman’s voice, and the stern, conflicted tone of the researcher. They knew each other, were in the same room together, but why hadn’t Jaqueline mentioned anything to her? It would only bring a flood of assumptions, questions and doubts Aseles no longer wished to hold, considering she had only recovered from the digital frontier that almost became her permanent home. Also, Jaqueline had her own share of the induced coma Aseles had gotten, and wondered if that prohibited the older woman from remembering certain things.

“Yeah, no problem,” Aseles strained a quick smile, taking the pouch and putting it in her second pocket. Well, she had to confront her problem at some point; bliss was nice while it lasted.

“I’ll go with you; I’m headed in the same direction,” Dimitri nodded, rolling up the sleeves of his long, navy shirt. They bundled and creased above his elbows, the hills of his upper arms more prominent and visible.

“Only give him the munny if the order is done,” Leon advised to the dark-haired teen. “Last time we paid him in full and he took twice as long to get the parts.”

“You got hustled, got it,” Dimitri smirked, the two watching Leon give them a last smile before making his way over to Cloud’s group.

Dimitri’s hazel orbs captured Aseles’, “Then let’s get going.” The two set off with a final wave to Raine, and climbed their way up the steps to arrive at the short distance of the Bailey’s base.

Aseles reached to tie her hair up, give the knot a final squeeze, “You’re pretty strong.”

“Oh, really?” Dimitri cocked a brow up, “That’s the first compli-“  
“But not as strong as me,” Aseles finished, giving him a satisfied grin.

Dimitri rolled his eyes, his hand pushing the side of her face away, “Sure. Keep telling yourself that.”

“I’m just kidding.”

“Uh huh.” They walked up the steps, proceeding down to walk across the Borough.

“I know it’s already been some time, but I never got to thank you,” Aseles replied after a few moments.

“Thank me for what?”

“For coming to save me from the Grid.” Dimitri slowed his pace at this, his eyes scanning the ground rather than in front. Aseles walked alongside him, her fingertips rubbing the ones on her opposite palm.

“I told you, Leon told me to go get you,” Dimitri defended.

Aseles took a moment, but replied, “Raine said you volunteered.”

He stuffed his hands in his pockets, looking bothered, “If I didn’t save your ass, who else was going to?” The statement hinted a small sting, as if he had told this to Aseles many times before.

“Raine said Axel was going to-“

“Axel wouldn’t even know where to look for you,” Dimitri countered confidently.

Aseles raised a brow, stopping in her stride, “And you did?”

“You’re here, aren’t you?” Dimitri scoffed, throwing a nonchalant hand in her direction.

Aseles sighed, resisting the urge to punch his shoulder, “You made it seem like it was a burden to come get me when it fact you were the one that put that burden on yourself.”

“Considering you’re my only ticket to saving my world, I had no other choice, did I?” his eyes taunted her, making her lips fall firm.

“I’m sorry what happened to Thebes, alright?” Aseles sighed, observing Dimitri carefully, “We all grieve losses differently, but if we let it get to us…” She stopped, unsure of the last part of the sentence herself. How could she finish it? If we let it get to us…

We lose ourselves?

We lose our motivation?

We lose what is the right thing to do? She wasn’t exactly the number one role model for that analogy.

“Yeah, I get it,” Dimitri austerely snapped, and stopped in front of the square of the Market Place. “Don’t lose sight of the Light, be the hero you’re meant to be. Be a hero to your friends- I _get_ it.”

His mocking tone put Aseles slightly on edge, “You don’t seem too keen on following those examples.”

“Here’s the thing, Aseles.” Dimitri tilted his head down, making Aseles lean her head back from how close he was, “You grew up with Light. You were taught to look at things a certain way. You were shown that Light was the _only_ way to get things done properly or correctly. That isn’t always the case.”

“What’s wrong with Light, then?” Aseles pressured, intrigued of the sudden turn of the conversation.

Dimitri happily retorted, “It’s too bright, it distorts your senses and makes you hallucinate things that aren’t there. Light might be the one thing you were taught, but it isn’t the only way…”

“What does…Darkness do for you then?” Aseles constricted her eyes.

Dimitri hummed, and tilted his head, looking to her transfixed, “I should ask you the same thing.”

Aseles swallowed, blinking rapidly of his sudden reply, “W-What do you mean?”

Dimitri lifted a hand, his thumb tucking underneath her jaw, making her look directly at him, “I can sense it. You have it locked away. Are you afraid of it?”

“What?! No, I don’t have any,” Aseles pushed his hand off immediately, feeling the hot bottom of a pan slide up her spine, melting her neck.

“Hmm, that’s not what I see,” Dimitri parted his lips slightly, whispering, “They have you conditioned.”

Aseles’ cheeks were now flaming magenta, her eyes shifting to the side, “No, I’m not.”

“How long have you been lying to yourself?” She didn’t answer, hearing Dimitri scoff. “I see. Afraid to disappoint them, huh? I don’t see how you would, if the other kid had Darkness.”

“Darkness and me? We don’t mix, okay?” Aseles exhaled out, her hands clamping to form fists, “It’s a long story.”

“The more you suppress it, the more it grows uncontrollable, you know that?” Dimitri drew out lowly, placing a hand on Aseles’ shoulder, the side of his head resting against hers. She blinked, feeling his soft locks brush across her temple and cheek, making her swallow of his towering height behind her. He held an ashy musk, reminding her the smell of hot sand, and grown pines trees.

“It doesn’t control you, you control it,” Dimitri continued, leaning the words into her ear, “If you want me to teach you, show up at the Bailey. Eight sharp. Don’t get lost.” He abruptly split away from her, and walked in his certain direction. Aseles swallowed roughly, watching him leave and disappear into the crowd. She felt a tickle run along the top of her mouth, making her shiver of the sudden sensation. She swiftly slithered her way across the bundle of buyers and sellers, bumping into several people lightly, distracted by Dimitri’s proposal.

Jeezes, she shouldn’t be. It was always mind games with him, despite how much they’ve come to stand one another now. Why would he propose such a thing? It’s not like…he really knew what was inside of her…right?

Once arriving in the Castle Town Square, she was able to focus on what she was planning to say to Jaqueline (she would deal with Dimitri later), or how she would even bring up Ansem to the conversation. But, really was it such a good idea to open up another Pandora box, rip off old band-aids and cut open closed seals? No, she should just drop off the munny, say hi to Stan if he was home, and leave. That was it. Just worry about Dimitri.

She played the scene repeatedly, but when she knocked on the door she nearly wanted to leave the pouch on the front step and run. She waited, clenching her teeth to rid of the hesitation she felt rooted to her feet. No, she shouldn’t be afraid, but how she ever was when Jaqueline opened the door.

Her dark hair swayed along her back, her smile stretching politely, “Why, hello Aseles. It’s been quite some time.”

“Um, Leon asked me to give you your pay. You forgot it yesterday,” Aseles reached in, and pulled it out.

Jaqueline smiled, “Oh, that’s very kind of you. Please, do come in. I just finished making some muffins. Have one for yourself.”

“I…really should get goin-“ Aseles grumbled to herself, watching as Jaqueline walked back inside her home, signaling Asels to follow. She hesitated, but lifted her feet over the doorframe, and closed the wood behind her. She breathed in the sweet smell of freshly, baked dough, and entered the kitchen. On the table was a pyramid of muffins, all steaming to cool off. Jaqueline washed her hands and dried them on her apron. She tugged it off to rest it on the head of her chair.

“Oh, here,” Aseles rested the pouch on the table, clearing her throat, “Are you….feeling better?”

“Yes, certainly,” Jaqueline blew out a puff of hair, her fingers delicately placing her strands behind her ear, “Been sleeping a lot more, thanks to you. How are you, Aseles? You look a little nervous.”

“Oh, just…..stuffffffff. Leon’s probably going to give me a bucket load of tasks to do when I get back, that’s all.”

“Ah, I see.” She giggled, “Hopefully not too much work. Everything seems to be running more smoothly; Leon introduced me to the new townsfolk. They’re awfully nice.”

“You mean, Zack, Bella and Auron?” She nodded. “Yeah, they are. They’re great friends.”

“What about Raine, and Dimitri?”

Aseles stretched her smile further, tucking her hands back to fold them tightly, “They’re great too. We’re a team.”

“As you should be,” Jaqueline raised a brow, her hand resting on the head of the chair. “…..Aseles?”

“Mhmm?” Aseles hummed out, lips pressed together.

“….Is there something you need to tell me?” Jaqueline craned her head down, eyes still locked onto Aseles.

“Um, no no. I’m just uh….wondering,” Aseles coughed in her fist once, puckering her lips slightly, eyes gazing to the muffin tower. “Is Stan here?”

“No, not at the moment,” the woman rested her free hand on her hip, “What are you really wondering about?”

“You wouldn’t….happen to know anything about Ansem, would you?” Aseles combatted, eyebrows knitted upwards. Might as well get it out instead of beating around the bush.

Jaqueline blinked, “No…anything in particular?”

“I don’t know, maybe um, ever got to know him?” Aseles clenched her teeth beneath closed lips, watching Jaqueline carefully.

“No, I don’t believe so. Why the sudden question?”

“I…must have been- erm I dreamt about it, that’s all,” Aseles shrugged, “I couldn’t sleep last night. But I feel better asking you about it.”

Jaqueline slanted her mouth diagonally, eyes lids raised worriedly, “Are you feeling fine? Did you remember something?”

“No no, I dreamt it, honest,” she lied. She reached for the top muffin, taking a bite out, “Mmnn…thif iz guud.”

“Aseles?” Jaqueline walked forward, placing a hand to her shoulder, “Is something the matter?”

Aseles swallowed heavily, sighing out heavily, “I don’t know- okay. I was in the Grid right? And-and I unlocked a code, or something inside of me? And it showed- I heard you and Ansem talking. I don’t know what it means, and I thought…to…ask you…”

The woman’s eyes widened, dazed and withdrawn, “I...I’m not sure what you’re talking about. I never met Ansem the Wise. Yes, we lived in the same world, but I never approached him, nor him to me.”

Aseles was heavily disappointed, knowing her luck was too good to be true. Jaqueline wouldn’t lie to her, nor would forget something so important. Was the memory in her a trick, a mirage? No…Kevin was insistent on helping her. She couldn’t let his help go in vain, for what he did for her. Ugh, what was going on.

“You were trapped in there for some time. Maybe it was the stress,” Jaqueline comforted, hands folded in front of her stomach. “Maybe…”

“No, it was real. I know it was real,” Aseles answered back gently, shaking her head. “I’ll figure it out, whether I remember or not. Sorry for bringing it up with you. Thanks for the muffin.”

“Before you go, Aseles. I need to remind you of one thing,” Jaqueline opened the front door for her when they got there. “The past may be important to who you are, but don’t lose sight of the future either…”

“Thanks,” Aseles nodded, “Tell Stan I said hi.” She walked down the pathway, and turned right to head back to the Castle Town Square. What she didn’t realize was Jaqueline watching after her, and then push her slender face into her palms. She squeezed her forehead, temples and eyes, exhaling deeply of Aseles’ sudden burst exposure.

“Oh dear….what do I do?” Jaqueline whispered to herself, “What do I do, Your Majesty?”

LATER:

The clock hit eight, but Aseles was still inside the Computer Room in Ansem’s Study. She knew what time it was, and had been keeping track of it for the past two hours. She came to the realization that maybe Dimitri was toying with her, trying to get under her skin for who knows what. Maybe he thrived on her confusion and curiosity, but Aseles was not having any of it. Instead she was bundled in the data mess of the computer, Cid concluding that maybe it still held some important files they had been unable to collect beforehand. With the help of Tron’s disk, she was able to power up the computer again, and able to access files that had once been restricted.

Jaqueline’s conversation with her did not calm her anxiety, nor did her last words of wisdom. Aseles _knew_ that her best options were to forget about the past, and pay attention to present matters. But…how could she if the past continued to make a reappearance everywhere she went. No matter where she went, landed or stayed, the burden of her forgotten memories was always with her despite her attempts and efforts to make it go away. That was the thing though: it was never going to.

Ansem left her with no leads or hints, except the idea of continuing to press forward. Everyone wanted her to either forget or remember naturally, yet none of this _was_ natural. It wasn’t natural for a kid to get a keyblade, nor having been stuck in a coma for a year. It was not normal to be fighting an organization who threatened the worlds, or make this grown kid fight Heartless day in and day out. None of this was normal, so why was Aseles’ case any different? She knew she wasn’t normal, but people continued to treat her like it.

Everyone acted like nothing was wrong, that everything was going to get better….so why. _Why_? Why did Aseles feel like something vital was missing with herself? She had the choice to feel different, yet was there any choice _at all_? Did she _really_ have the freedom to choose how she felt, or was this illness and depression something she was going to live for the rest of her life? Even if she got her memories back (if there were ever able to be retrieved)? No, probably not, but damn it she wanted them so badly.

“UGH!!!” Aseles groaned, slumping back in her chair, her hands slapping to her face. “I hate thiiiiiiis….”

“I think it looks like you’re having the time of your life.” Aseles jumped, whirling her head around to see it was Axel by the doorframe. “Jeezes, you’re going to give me a heart attack.”

“More reason to solidify the fact that I’m a show stopper,” Axel grinned, strolling in. “Doing good?”

“Yeah, I guess,” Aseles sighed, shrugging while resting her chin in her hand.

Axel gave a questioning look, “You didn’t sound too excited five seconds ago.” He rested his hand on the back of Aseles’ chair, and tugged her enough to be directly below his eyes, “Something eating you?” Aseles timidly explained to him of the circumstance she ran into the Grid, and what Flynn had shown her. Axel listened intently, nodding in comprehension of her ordeal. “That sounds like a whole load of no.”

“You’re telling me,” Aseles exhaled, slumping in her chair, closing her eyes, “I don’t know what to do. I….have been distracting myself to get rid of it, but that’s not working out.”

“I might help you further: Leon wants you to head to Twilight Town, tomorrow.”

“Twilight Town?” Aseles blinked. “For a regular check-up?”

“That, and he wants to try to connect both worlds computers,” Axel shrugged. “Don’t know if it’ll work, but it’s worth a shot.”

“That’s….new. But alright, I’ll go. Did you want to come with?”

“Maybe later,” Axel waved a hand off, “Let’s get you back to the house. You’ve been stuck in this room long enough.” The clock had struck nine-thirty, and by the time Axel dropped her off at her place, it was forty-five. She bid him a goodnight, and closed the door, locking it. She felt the heavy pounding of her head, and made her way to the fridge, retrieving some ingredients to make herself a decent sandwich. She ate in silence, and was halfway done when she heard the door upstairs close. She watched with slow munches, Dimitri stepping into view.

His damp bangs swept across his forehead, a few of the usual strands sticking up from behind. His eyes took a calm color of bronze and green, resembling the calm serenity of a lit lagoon. His chest was dressed in a dark shirt, and lower body tucked in a pair of sweats. He was barefoot, but his step was silent when he stepped onto the tiled floor.

“You’re practically two hours late,” Dimitri watched her.

“I was stuck taking care of something,” Aseles drank down her sandwich with her tall glass of water.

Dimitri strolled over, hand pressed on the table next to her plate, “Stuck involuntarily?”

“Cid wanted me to clear the cache in the computer at the Postern,” Aseles defended, finishing her last bites, refusing to lose her appetite.

“He wanted you to or you volunteered? There’s a difference,” Dimitri flatly pointed out. Aseles swallowed her last bite and stood, passing Dimitri with a slight bump to his shoulder. She headed to the sink, and washed her dishes, but Dimitri closed the distance behind her, “Had second thoughts?”

“Look, whatever you proposed to me, you can forget about it,” Aseles calmly argued, shaking her head. “There’s no Darkness in me.”

“Never mind, you’re in denial,” Dimitri corrected himself.

“Dimitri- how can you even tell?” Aseles huffed out, not bothering to dry her hands, rubbing her wrists with cold fingers to cool off her tension.

“If you were entirely made of Light-“ Dimitri snatched her hand, his second hand hovering over her palm.

“W-What are you doing??” Aseles froze when she saw the abrupt, dark flames engulf her fingers, a rising heat increasing gradually. She tried to pry her hand away, but Dimitri kept it firm. After a few seconds, he relinquished his flames, but his hand continued to grip hers. She blinked, speedily beholding her hand to check if she had charred skin. But…she didn’t.

“You would have some indication of a burn, or a scar, but you don’t,” Dimitri continued, catching Aseles’ full attention now. “A part of you has Darkness. You’re too afraid to have any potential in it.” His fingers slid off of her skin, making her stiffen in her place.

“It’s…Darkness is not for me. I don’t need any training in it.”

“Hmm, why is that?” Dimitri leaned his side against the counter, eyes still locked onto hers.

“I’ll never use it,” Aseles defended again.

Dimitri chuckled at her response, “Really? You’ve never used it?” As if he had caught her stealing something she shouldn’t have.

“…No…”

“Not once?”

“Are you some sort of Darkness guru now? Jeezes.” She closed in her chair, and hurried up the steps into the hallway. The doors were all open, indicating no one else was in the house, making her that more prone to yelling to Dimitri who was in close tow.

“No, I’m simply trying to help you with your situation,” Dimitri stood in front doorframe, making her whirl around to look up to him. “But you’re really stubborn, you know that?”

“I appreciate….you trying to help me, even though we hit a rocky start but- I’ll never use the Darkness. I’ve had….terrible experiences with it, and I don’t want to hit that point again.”

“What if you do? What if you had better control of it now than you did before?”

“That’s not the point-“ Aseles tried again.

Dimitri shook his head briefly, leaning his head slightly down, “Yes, it is. You’re afraid to try it because of past experiences. And whatever happened, happened. You need to grasp that. Whatever they conditioned you to be is not the person you truly are.”

Aseles studied his face carefully, chest protected with crossed arms. Dimitri stayed glued in his stance, a sense of history played and seeped in his hinted words. Had he experienced something similar, and resulted in being the Dark Boy he was?

Aseles scoffed, cocking her hip out slightly, taking a prominent, bold stance, “How would you know what kind of person I truly am?”

A dark glitter rained along his eyes, his feet still positioned at her doorframe. He towered over her completely, her head leaned back slightly and looking up to him with hunched shoulders. She refused to lean back, or give him the satisfaction of having a strong presence over her. He, however, was pleased of the challenge.

Hips lips parted, his voice a deep octave and true, “Depends…will you let me find out?”

It should be noted that three things happened after he said this.

The first, Aseles closed the door on him, regretting even touching his toned chest in order to push him fully out.

The second, she pressed her back against the barrier between her and him, muttering to herself of how ridiculous this all was.

The third........the extremely hot crease of boiling water along her face, neck and stomach. She leaned against the wood for support, fingers spread and suctioned to the material. She knew the moment he looked at her, he was nothing of a savior, and all trouble, but that information alone was not enough to disrupt and end the game of whatever Dimitri was clinging onto. She felt him on the other side, his palm sliding down, fingertips plunging into her nervous system. She felt him grin, smirk, a small chuckle ringing into her ears.

“I’ll let you think about it, then.” He hummed softly, “You know what room I’m staying in.”

He cheated, he cheated around whatever guard she had. She told her herself it wasn’t going to happen again, that she would be ready for Dimitri’s next battle with her.

So why....why couldn’t she get him off of her mind after she had showered, dressed, and laid down on her bed? Why could she still feel his presence, despite acknowledging he was behind sturdy walls and nowhere near her?

What kind of new box did she open up after all today? Certainly, it was not one she was expecting nor one she was ready for.

THE NEXT MORNING:

The training ended early for Aseles, Raine and Dimitri. All three stood in front of Leon and Cid, beneath the great pasture of land below the Market Place. Leon gave her the instructions, and Cid handed her the disk he had prepared, hoping for success. Aseles took it with a nod, and waved them off as they walked.

“Be careful!” Leon called out, backing up as Aseles pulled the gummi ship off the ground. Cid and Leon waved them off, with Axel at the top of the hill, standing at the brick wall. Aseles smiled at his ridiculous waving arms, and took the ship to the sky.

“Ohh, this is a nice ship,” Raine swung her legs to and fro, her eyes gliding along the control panel. “What does this do?”

“This is the graph, showing us the fastest route to Twilight Town,” Aseles explained, trying to ignore Dimitri who sat at her left. He stayed relatively quiet, an arm resting behind his head with the other hooked over the arm of the chair. He had his eyes closed, but Aseles knew he was far from any kind of sleep. She looked over to see him, and the moment she did, she looked away when his eyes cracked open.

“Free show, you can look if you want,” Dimitri teased, making Aseles adjust in her seat. She was glad Raine wasn’t paying attention, her face ducked into the manual book for the gummi ship panels.

Aseles shot Dimitri a glance, and whispered “I will open the hatch and kick you right now.”

“If you can,” Dimitri smirked.

The trip was relatively short, and soon the trio arrived at the Train Station, the sun high and pedestaled in the sky. The ongoing and coming trams swam along their rails and highways, the sounds of chatter refreshing to Aseles’ ears. The world was now reopening with their residents out again. Aseles walked to the edge of the platform, smiling at the lit houses, shops and streets. Boarded windows and doors were history, individuals walking back and forth.

“Oh, this is a nice place!” Raine smiled, leaning over, “And they have a beach?”

“Yeah, never been there though,” Aseles hummed out, reaching in her pocket to double-check she had the disk. “Maybe when we’re done, we can go for some ice-cream.”

“Where do we go?” Dimitri asked, his worn jacket swaying slightly in the breeze.

“Right, we head to the Old Mansion. That’s where my friends are.”

Raine was absorbed in the town’s atmosphere, her eyes shifting to and fro to catch the sights, though Dimitri seemed more keen on arriving to their said destination. He did take an interest at the Armory Shop going down the pathway. Aseles pointed to the ice-cream shop they would head to when they arrived at the Tram Common. Several people were gathered around the place, some eyes catching Aseles and her group. She smiled to them and waved, and they did the same gesture in return.

“Hey, you!” When they came in front of the gap of the brick wall, Aseles faced the direction toward the Sandlot. There, she saw Seifer was approaching, and behind him was Rai and Fuu. Aseles blinked, confused of Seifer’s....brash stance to her and her group.

“Uh, hey,” Aseles greeted. She thumbed to the trail of the Woods, “Are Hayner, Pence and Olette in there?”

“Affirmative,” Fuu replied first, though her stance was wary, and she stepped aside from Seifer who was in front and center. Rai, as well, had his arms crossed, and favored the side that did not involve his leader.

Seifer hard eyes glanced to Aseles, then to Dimitri and Raine, “Who are you? Where are the three clowns?”

“My friends are not here at the moment,” Aseles defended in quickly, figuring he retained his sour attitude. “This is Seifer, Fuu and Rai. Dimitri and Raine.”

“Um....hi,” Raine raised a hesitant hand, but dropped it down straightaway when Seifer looked to her.

“Hmph, I’m sure you told them I run this town,” Seifer started, making Aseles roll her eyes, “That way, we know who’s boss, and we don’t have any problems.”

“That’s not guaranteed,” Dimitri suddenly cut in, making Aseles want to slap her forehead. Can’t this guy keep his comments to himself for once?

Seifer took the challenge, hands clenched tightly to make clubs, “What did you say?”

“I didn’t stutter-“

“OKAY!” Aseles cut in between the two, feeling their icy glare dance across her arms when her hands connected to their advancing chests. “We need to get going, _now_.” Seifer’s group walked around them, Aseles and Raine watching them walk and disappear into the crowd of the Tram Common area.

“I swear, Dimitri,” Aseles mumbled, walking straight past him and entering the decorated, arching entrance that had been built in the brick wall.

“I said what everyone was thinking,” Dimitri scoffed out, following behind the sweatdropping Raine. Aseles followed the made walkway, curving along the trees and leading up to the Old Mansion; Hayner and the others must’ve done it to invite the townsfolk to approach their new base at the Mansion. Finally at the opened, large gates, Aseles lead her team inside the now cleared courtyard, replenished with gardens of diverse flowers. The freshly-dewed grass printed their footsteps, making the bottom of their shoes splat against the stone floor in front of the wooden door.

Aseles knocked, “Be on your best behavior.”

“Oh, okay,” Raine cleared her throat, brushing her hair back quickly.

“...Not you, Dimitri.”

“Oh.”

“Because I was going to let myself be talked down to by an idiot-“

“Just. Be. Nice. _Okay_??”

“Sure.”

The door opened, Aseles smiling to see it was Hayner, “Hey!”

“Look who’s here,” Hayner opened the door widely, displaying the large table in the foyer. Pence and Olette were sitting, and waved enthusiastically to the entering trio.

“Aseles, you’re here!” Olette nearly leaped over the table, and ran until she crashed onto Aseles with an embrace, “It’s good to see you!”

“Hey guys,” Aseles smiled widely, looking around the lobby. “You’ve cleaned up the place. You guys are looking a lot better, and so is Twilight Town.”

“All thanks to you,” Hayner grinned.

“Who are your friends?” Pence tilted his head, smiling to Raine first.

“Hayner, Pence, Olette, meet Raine and Dimitri. They’re traveling with me right now,” Aseles started.

“Oh, it’s really nice to meet you!” Olette stretched out her hand.

Raine took it, beaming and blushing gently, “It’s nice to meet you. Aseles had told us about you.”

“I hope good things,” Hayner joked. “Nice to meet ya, man.”

Dimitri nodded his head forward, his hand shaking Olette’s once, “Likewise.”

“Where are Sora, Donald and Goofy?” Pence asked next, hands patting his back pockets.

Aseles’ smile dropped, her chest heaving out, “It’s a long story.”

“We’ve got a long story for you too...yeah,” Pence scratched the back of his head, quirking his mouth.

Hayner nodded, “We were hoping you guys would visit. We were getting anxious, to be honest.”

“Why, what’s wrong?” Aseles inquired.

“It’s about Seifer.” Hayner took the head of the table, but let Aseles spill out first. They gathered around the table, Hayner and Olette sitting against the edge with Pence in-between Hayner and Aseles. Dimitri closed the circle, the tallest in the group.

She was careful to mention the result of Thebes, knowing Dimitri was looking right at her instead of past her. She regretted it entirely, however, seeing how Hayner’s cheery disposition evaporated, and was now placed with the heavy burden of his keyblade’s responsibilities. She cited the reason for Sora’s absence, but thought better than to put herself in the picture. She stated she was unsure when he would come back, along with her other two friends.

“That’s...awful,” Olette replied, frowning. “That world...there’s nothing we can do to save it?”

“Right now, we don’t know, but our best option is to make sure it doesn’t happen to any other worlds. Maybe if we stop the Substitutions, we can figure something out,” Aseles prompted hopefully. “I have Raine and Dimitri helping me; they’re both keyblade wielders, and I need all the help I can get right now.”

“We’ll help anyway we can, too,” Pence encouraged, “Still…a whole world gone? That’s….I can’t even imagine.”

“Leon, the one who runs the Hollow Bastion Committee, wanted to send us over, so we could give you a program with integrated claymores for the town. It’s not much but it could prevent a serious situation.” Aseles pulled out the thin and circular object, “He and Cid made the CD, and hopes it could link the computers as well.”

“You really think it would work?” Olette blinked, watching Pence take the disk in his hand.

“That sounds neat though. We could try it out,” Pence beamed. “I’ve been trying to calibrate the computer we have below, so it would be nice to have some help with it. Do you mind rewiring the computer?”

“Yeah, of course!” Aseles nodded eagerly, “But…what’s up with Seifer? We ran into him and he was…..off.”

“It’s…better if we show you…” Aseles, Raine and Dimitri exchanged glances, but followed the three to the west of the staircase, and entered the Library. The vanished floor exposed the metal, underground facilities, and the group trekked further into the corridor. Past the open room, they came into the Computer Room. The cool temperature relaxed Aseles, but her eyes scrunched in question toward the locked chest beside the multiple, upgraded computer screens.

“We fixed everything the best we could,” Pence sat in the only chair, digits quickly pressing along the keyboard. “It operates with all the information we have on the town. From here, we can now seal the Underground Concourse, and have put help stations in the Sandlot and the Train Station.”

“This is really neat,” Aseles smiled widely. She watched Pence insert the disk into the CD slot, the program downloading at a steady rate.

“What’s in the chest?” Dimitri noted, gathering Hayner’s attention.

“That’s what I wanted to talk about,” Hayner replied, “Come over here.” Aseles followed with her two friends, kneeling down as Hayner took out the key from his pocket, and inserted it into the lock. It gave way with a click, and with a twist Hayner opened the chest. Inside, Aseles felt a cruel presence, and she was none disappointed when she saw a keyblade was inside, emitting dark smoke. It was relatively smaller compared to the one Aseles had. It was plain of any color, but held a strong resemblance to a Kingdom Key.

“A keyblade?” Raine asked first.

Hayner nodded, “Seifer found it in the Sandlot, a couple of days ago. Fuu and Rai came to the Mansion to tell us, and we nearly had to pry it away from him.”

“So he’s not a natural asshole?” Dimitri commented plainly.

“….Yes and no,” Hayner waved his hand to the side, “But anyways, ever since he touched it, he’s been acting more irascible than before; you say something and he snaps like a bomb.”

“It must have a dark quality to it. We haven’t seen something like this before,” Aseles hummed, standing up once Hayner closed it. “Does he know where it is?”

“No. We always keep it locked up in here,” Hayner crossed his arms. “We tried getting rid of it, but the thing won’t break no matter how many times I smack it. It just doesn’t want to give.”

“I’ve got a bad feeling about it,” Raine frowned.

“So do we,” Olette added in, standing next to her. “We were wondering if you could take it. We don’t think it’s safe here.”

“No sign of any Substitutes here?” Aseles asked next, “It couldn’t have popped up on its own.”

“That’s what we think, but there hasn’t been anyone suspicious. It was like…it was waiting for someone to pick it up.” Hayner sighed, “Whoever left it had no intentions of wanting it back. No doubt they left it on purpose…”

“Then we’ll take it with us,” Aseles reassured. “Don’t worry about it.”

“And there!” Pence clapped his hands, leaning back in his chair. The group walked over, surrounding him from behind to look at the main, large screen. It buffered, but with a final keystroke, the screen gave a clear and crisp resolution. Aseles recognized the room instantaneously, and chuckled when she saw Cid sleeping in his chair.

“Heelllloooooo!” Pence called out, stirring Cid awake and catching Leon’s attention from the far table. Axel joined him, and promptly punched the back of Cid’s chair, waking up the blond.

“Who-wha-“ Cid grumbled, plastering his hands on his eyes. “Can’t a man rest in peace?”

“Hi, Leon!” Aseles and Raine waved, making the brunette smile.

“Looks like you’ve hooked the computers together. Well done,” Leon grinned.

“Well done? I’m the one who made it,” Cid grumbled, standing up groggily and headed to the table where his coffee waited.

“It’s working great!” Olette giggled, clapping her hands.

“Oh, right! This is Hayner, Pence and Olette. And this is Leon and Axel. The grumpy one is Cid,” Aseles informed.

“I heard that!” Cid called out, his back to the screen.

“It’s very nice to meet you! We’ve heard much about you,” Olette bowed her head politely.

“As have we,” Leon bowed his head back, “Now that you have the program installed, we can guide you through the instructions so you can set the claymores in place.”

“Sounds good!” Pence straightened up in his chair, cracking his fingers, “Let’s do this!”

“Oh, this is so cool!” Olette clapped, “We’ve never had something like this happen before! We should celebrate with ice cream.”

“Heh, we wouldn’t mind bringing them over,” Aseles smiled, “Sea-salt?”

“Yeah, always,” Olette smiled. “Why don’t you go with them, Hayner? You could use the fresh air.”

“I…I don’t know,” Hayner mumbled, scratching the back of his neck, “I can’t leave you guys.”

“Go on, we’ll wait for you here,” Pence smiled, gesturing Hayner forward. “Socialize with other people.”

“Very funny,” Hayner slouched his shoulders, but caved. “Alright, we’ll be back.”

“I’ll stay and keep watch, if you’re so worried,” Dimitri insisted, hand holding his hip. “Also if he needs help with the computer.”

“Sounds good,” Raine smiled. Hayner, Aseles and Raine made their way up the stairs, into the foyer and out the Old Mansion doors.

Hayner closed them behind him, and smiled gently to Raine, “So Raine, how is it like being stuck with Aseles most of the time?”

“Haha, hah,” the brunette stuck her tongue out, making the blond laugh heartily.

“Not bad, she keeps an eye on us, even though she gets in trouble sometimes,” Raine giggled. “She’s a good teacher.”

“Yeah, I would have to agree,” Hayner replied, “She taught me a valuable lesson on what it means to have a keyblade, so it’s nice to know she teaching you.”

“I swear, you guys,” Aseles waved her hand in between, cutting off the conversation, “You’re holding up good, Hayner?”

“Yeah, much better. Despite…everything that’s happened, things are going pretty good,” Hayner grinned gently, “Things aren’t the same as before but they’re good. It reassures me whenever you visit. I sure hope Sora, Donald and Goofy are alright.”

“I’m sure they are.”

“Why didn’t you go with them?” Hayner asked.

Aseles swallowed off the strain in her throat, “If I did, who was going to check up on you?”

Hayner chuckled, “Yeah, I suppose you’re right.” The three were now exiting the Woods, and strolling down the walkway toward the Tram Common. If eyes had not been laid on Aseles and her group before, they were now. The shoppers and townsfolk all waved to Hayner respectively, others tipping an invisible hat to him when they walked right by him or patting his back.

“You’re so well-known,” Raine commented.

“I’m sure he likes the attention,” Aseles nudged his rib, making him fidget and push her slightly off.

“Maybe…a little,” Hayner grinned standing in line with her and Raine toward the ice-cream parlor. “It’s nice seeing everyone coming out again, and safe. This place sure turned itself around.”

“It’s all thanks to you, and Olette and Pence,” Aseles curved her lips upward, “Without you guiding the town, this wouldn’t have happened.”

“I guess. I just…haven’t saved _everyone_ …”

“Oh, Seifer, right,” Aseles nodded.

“Maybe once we take the keyblade, he’ll feel better,” Raine comforted, swaying on her heels gently, her fingers fiddling with the edges of her skirt.

“Yeah, I hope so. Six bars please, sea salt flavor,” Hayner reached into his pocket, and pulled out the necessary munny to the clerk. They each took two in hand, and thanked the woman cashier before heading down the path again.

“Gosh, it’s like old times, huh?” Hayner chuckled, twirling a popsicle in one hand.

“Hmm, does it taste good?” Raine asked, looking to the bar in her left hand interestedly, then to the one on her right. “Never had sea-salt. Only vanilla.”

“Well sea-salt is like-“ WHOO-OO, WHOO-OO.

The crowd in the plaza began to disperse, all running for the nearest buildings to hide in. Doors and windows slammed closed, Hayner, Aseles and Raine frozen in place. The sirens picked up louder, Hayner’s eyes bulging out in horror.

“Oh no…” His grip on the ice cream was let go, and he sprinted across the brick floor. Aseles and Raine exchanged quick glances, but they too let go of the ice cream, and flashed their keyblades out in hand. As they approached the entrance to the Woods, Aseles’ eyes widened to the sight of Seifer cutting across the pavement, and raced down the slope to the right. In his hand, he held the cursed keyblade Hayner had shown them, and was racing straight for the Sandlot.

“No, stop!” Hayner shouted, and gave pursuit.

“Go check on the others!” Aseles ordered out to Raine. She complied, and hurried into the section of the Woods, Aseles running after Hayner.

“ _Intruder, alert. Town attack in progress_.”

The running women and men cut in every direction, and Aseles stared horrified at the dark portals that were commencing to open, soon trapping her into the Sandlot arena. Hayner and Seifer openly faced one another, Hayner’s keyblade drawn with eyes constricted unsympathetically. Seifer was swaying in place, his entire form coated in a musky, dark fog. The hand that gripped the cursed keyblade was shrouded in dark vines, and were wrapping and squeezing around his shoulder and neck.

“There’s nowhere left to run!” Hayner ordered out, “Give me back that keyblade! Can’t you see its controlling you?!”

Seifer was unmoved, and he suddenly slammed the weapon down. Hayner and Aseles quickly split, watching the dark wave thunder and crash against the ground, and slam into the building behind them. A large cloud of ash spread, leaving a deep crater into the brick.

“Knock it out of his hand if you have to!” Aseles gritted her teeth, standing beside Hayner again. “Ready??”

“Let’s go!” Hayner encouraged, and the two cut off into a straight sprint. Seifer once more thrashed his keyblade downward, the two rolling out of the way. Hayner took the lead, and rammed his keyblade against Seifer’s, dark sparks flaming and smoking along their strikes. Seifer was not proficient, but the keyblade seemed to possess a high-quality barrier, half of Hayner’s attacks meeting a shield rather than being able to knock Seifer down. Aseles came up from the side, and slammed her keyblade right across. Seifer jumped, resulting in Aseles and Hayner meeting keyblades. They swiftly turned to see Seifer launch his keyblade horizontally across, a thundering cloud rushing to them. Again the two rolled away, Aseles taking the initiative. Her eyes glowed a bright silver, her hand illuminating a reflection of deep golden-orange.  Her attacks were more frontal and speedy, Seifer having trouble keeping up with deflecting her movements. The barrier formed to shield him, but Aseles took her entire Golden State, and rammed her keyblade like a bat. The shield cracked and splintered across Seifer’s face, and he was sent flying across the air, and hitting the ground. The keyblade in his had rolled out of the way, but the glow around him did not diminish.

“It’s over, Seifer!” Hayner shouted, standing boldly.

Seifer strained, his eyes leering past them, “Be-Behind you!” Aseles whirled around, but met the air and crashed alongside Hayner. The two groaned, swiftly standing to face the standing Vanitas, and the advancing Chad from the made portal.

“You’ve got to be kidding me,” Aseles whispered lowly.

“Friends of yours?” Hayner joked, teeth clenched.

“And the fun begins!” Chad spread his arms open. Without warning, Vanitas dashed across the floor like a propelled jet, and plunged his keyblade against Aseles’. Her feet skidded across the ground like ice, her stand finally stopping before she took serious damage to the building somewhere behind her.

She glared to the smirking Vanitas, “I suggest you leave, or I’m really going to have to kick your face in!”

“Is that a promise?” Vanitas cooed, and the two conflicted heavily against each other. His set of clones spun and whirled around her, but Aseles was not taking any chances, seeing Chad was tossing Hayner across the ground, and gaining the upper hand.

“Fire!” Aseles was swallowed in flames, and the clones puffed out of view. She immediately jumped aside, Vanitas’ dropping form missing her. She batted her keyblade to and fro, and thrusted her weapon forward to Vanitas’ blocking front. His arms parted open in surprise, and he grunted loudly when Aseles sent a whirling, kick to his side, her entire leg coated in blue.

“Hayner, hang on!” Aseles called out, seeing Hayner pick himself back up, and push his keyblade against Chad’s continuous kicks.

“Your battle is with me!” Vanitas hollered, and Aseles whirled her keyblade above her. The dark, raining bolts were pushed off like a rapid windmill, the ground beneath Aseles now cracking open. She controlled her keyblade to Vanitas’ direction, slick and strong vines slicing through the air. They all twisted and rolled like a vicious arrow, and aimed straight to Vanitas. Vanitas swiftly cut and sliced to repel the magical form, and Aseles knew he would not be kept at bay for long. Her head whirled around, seeing Hayner was on the floor now, and Chad strolling over to him with a dark glint in his eyes.

“Hayner!” Aseles sprinted, her green orbs targeting to Chad.

“Aseles!” She halted to a stop, and looked over to see Dimitri had arrived, having somehow merged past through the dark portals that had enclosed her in earlier. His eyes met hers, but she nearly screamed out his name when she saw Vanitas launch himself off of the tower of her vines, and ready to slam down to Dimitri.

“MOVE!” Dimitri didn’t hesitate, and rolled away, keyblade drawn to rebound the spared bolts Vanitas released.

“Aseles, no!” Hayner cried out. She wailed out painfully, and she was slammed against the pavement, her shoulder crushed by Chad’s foot.

“Get off!” Aseles squirmed, “Thunder!” Chad’s weight lifted, Aseles able to stand now. She jumped at Dimitri falling next to her, looking back to see Vanitas and Chad had cornered them against the wall. She clamped her hand to Dimitri’s, helping him stand.

“Let ‘em have it, chap,” Chad grinned darkly. Vanitas lifted a hand, the head of his keyblade over his opened palm, like a billiard stick aimed. Aseles and Dimitri parted in different directions, but the distance was not enough to save themselves. The magnetic wave of Darkness pinned the two against the wall, cries and screams of agony filling the air. Aseles felt the thousands of pins and thorns cut into her skin, her head flailing to and fro to be released of Vanitas’ delivered hell. She felt the ripping of her skin and organs, eyes tearing of the searing pain traveling across her limbs. Her eyes squinted, teeth bared to see Hayner was being picked up by Chad, and hung in his arm. The dark portal behind Chad and Vanitas grew, a harsh gale surrounding the area.

“NO! STOP!” Aseles shouted out, struggling to release her binds. Her golden outlined body burned through Vanitas’ attack, and she felt her legs moving her painfully forward. The vines pulled and stretched like glue and gum, trying to pry her back to her motionless stance.

“Let’s play Hero versus Villain,” Vanitas walked forward, standing in front of Aseles a yard away. “You’re the Hero, and we’re the Villians. Sounds like fun, right?”

“No, don’t take him, please!” Aseles grunted, seeing Hayner poorly struggling in Chad’s grip. He had been beaten down severely, his hand barely able to grip onto his keyblade much longer. It dragged across the ground, the sound of scrapping metal hard and loud.

Vanitas sneered, his hand gripping her jaw tightly, “If you really want to prove yourself, you’ll come and save him. Be the good hero you were meant to be! Show me what you can really do. I love a good show, so don’t disappoint me.” He let go, and started he way over to Chad’s side.

“Say goodbye, boy,” Chad picked up Hayner’s useless hand, and waved it purposely to Aseles’ way. “Let’s see if she rescues you, eh?”

“NO! NOOOO!” Aseles snarled in her trap, her outlined body now entirely ripping away from Vanitas snare. She raced and stumbled forward, and she slammed her body across, leaping. When she met the stone floor, her eyes shut tightly, her fingers spread out of her failed attempt.

“Hayner! Hayner! NO!” Aseles sobbed out, tears pouring over her lids. She looked around the arena, but they halted on Dimitri who was still trapped, groaning painfully. She ran over hastily, and her keyblade cut down around his form. He broke free of the vine-like chains, gasping in the air lustfully. Aseles pulled him over to his back, patting his face.

“Stay a-awake. Open your mouth-“ Her hand trembled from opening the corked potion, and let it slide into his parted mouth. He choked briefly, but drank. She let the hot tears stream and trickle down, and once Dimiti was able to sit up, she broke away from him. Her eyes transfixed to the spot of where the portal was, her feet motioning her lifeless body over. Her hands shook greatly, and she shut her eyes several times to wake up from this bad dream. No…she was awake. She was awake. This…this was really happening.

“A-Aseles,” Dimitri croaked from behind.

She didn’t bother turning around, and instead buried her face in her hands, “He’s gone….He’s gone.” She dropped hard onto her knees, her bones rattling in her legs, “Hay-ner…Hayner! He’s gone! No! No no no! NO! Oh please, n-no….!” Dimitri’s hands gripped her shoulders, but Aseles fought back, trying to shove him away.

“Aseles, Aseles!” Dimitri held her tightly, making her face him. “We’ll save him, we’ll save him, okay? You need to get a grip!”

Aseles’ lips quivered, the mess of her tears rolling down her cheeks, “They took him….They took Hayner, Dimitri!” She dropped herself against him, her arms clutching around his torso. She felt her back soothed, and she cried more when she acknowledged Dimitri was the one rocking her back and forth. In the distance, Dimitri looked over to see Raine hurrying over, with Pence and Olette trekking behind her. He shook his head slowly to the blue-haired girl, her face grimacing of the sudden turn of events. Olette and Pence stood stone-still, their eyes examining the disrupted field, the knocked out Seifer, and the absence of their best friend.

“No….no,” Olette quaked hurtfully, her hands gripping the sides of her head, “Hayner, where’s Hayner?” Their eyes traveled to the sobbing Aseles and kneeling Dimitri, but Pence already knew. Instead of answering Olette, he held her tightly, and brushed her hair back, trying to recompose his train of thought.

“It’s going to be okay…” Pence spoke to her crying form, and to himself, “Everything is going to be okay…”


	21. An Old Enemy

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> 2AM. WHO NEEDS SLEEP. Imma right?
> 
> Wow, so, gosh. Another chapter- I'm not prepared for any of this. How about you? If I'm...calculating this correctly, we have around...maybe 10 more chapters until we begin to close this adventure off. Pretty exciting right?! I AM, BECAUSE I'VE BEEN WORKING ON THIS SINCE 2006 AND I'M SO DONE WITH ALL OF THIS.
> 
> JEEZES, thank you so much for the support guys, I know I'm a broken record but I mean it! We're approaching awful and amazing things, so stay tuned!
> 
> Sincerely,  
> Keys
> 
> P.S. Sorry, Hayner.

The loss was impeccable, haunting more like it. The rushing silence of the day before still lingered in the foyer, everyone being present except for Olette who had instead locked herself in the bedroom section of the Old Mansion.

Pence sat in his usual seat, next to Hayner’s. Aseles, Dimitri and Raine sat across from him, their eyes lingering over every so often to Seifer, Rai and Fuu who were present at the edge of the table. Seifer had not uttered a word since arriving this morning, Rai and Fuu following his example quite well. Aseles had repelled whatever tears she had left, knowing that she had to suck up whatever emotional bubbling thrived in her throat; this was not the time anymore. Tears were not going to bring anyone back.

When they had gotten back, they informed Leon of the situation that had unfolded. He had suggested they come back for full training, and Aseles agreed, keeping something else in mind for that. Dimitri and Raine were silent at her sides, and they too agreed that was their best option. Now, here they were after having slept poorly last night to make sure that the security system of the world was up and running, the hidden claymores stationed along the fear-stricken town. For some odd reason it had hit a snag when it was downloading, Dimitri claiming he was trying to fix it with Pence and Olette when they had left to go to the Tram Common. Moments later, Dimitri was knocked out, and when he had awoken, he found Pence and Olette on the ground next to him, and the chest opened by a possessed Seifer. Pence and Olette confirmed the story.

“What’s the plan?” Pence folded his hands on the table, his cheery demeanor something of the past.

Aseles nodded, straightening up in her chair, “We’ll go travel across the other worlds, and we’ll bring Hayner back, safe and sound.”

Pence nodded, and all four stood, “You can restock as much as you want here. We’ll head to the Train Station right now if you’re ready.”

“No, not yet,” Dimitri suddenly announced. Aseles followed his stare, seeing he was studying Seifer closely with a secure glare.

“...What?” Seifer beckoned a hand out.

“We’re not leaving until you apologize,” Aseles added in, a hand resting flat on the table on her left. “Because of you, Hayner is gone.”

“Guys...” Pence tried to argue.

“...Apologize,” Fuu unexpectedly declared, her eyes glancing to her surprised ringleader. Seifer’s eyebrows joined together, and a heavy puff left his chest. He shifted a bit in his stance, but he walked over, and stood in front of a concerned Pence. Seifer looked down to him, but bowed his head in deep respect.

“I’m....sorry, Pence.”

Pence’s mouth curved downward, “It’s okay...Right now it’s important we get tend to the people of the town. Can you start doing that for me?” Seifer nodded gently, avoiding any glimpse to Aseles’ group. He walked out of the Old Mansion with Fuu and Rai, leaving the door open behind them. Aseles turned back to Pence who rubbed his face gingerly, afraid to break whatever guard he had built upon himself.

Aseles walked over when he rounded the table, “It’s really nice of you, but we’ll head to the Train Station on our own.”

“But...”

“Olette needs a friend. Olette needs you, Pence,” Aseles gripped his hand, giving it a tight squeeze.

He shivered in place, but squeezed back, “You’re right. If there’s anything you need, please, don’t hesitate to ask. And if you ever want to drop by, you’re always welcomed.”

“The same, Pence. We’ll see each other soon,” Aseles wrapped her arms around him, and he exchanged the embrace right back. They parted, and she watched him head inside the room to the left, leaving the door slightly ajar.

Aseles turned back to her group when Raine addressed their attention, “We’re headed back to Radiant Garden?”

“Yeah,” Aseles replied firmly, hands in curled fists, “If they took Hayner, it wasn’t by coincidence. They knew they could lure him out with Seifer, and attacked when the system was not properly in place yet. They were waiting for the right moment to strike.”

“Aseles...what if they’re kidnapping other keyblade wielders?” Raine voiced out, clamping her hands together onto her chest.

Aseles grimaced, “That’s what I’m afraid of.” She led them out toward the doors of the Mansion, and the three advanced through the deserted streets toward the Train Station. Once inside the landed gummi ship, all three buckled themselves into their seats, and took off into the sky.

HAYNER’S POV:

He was...hallucinating, right? None of this was real, none of this was....re-

“Ow!” he groaned, feeling the slick floor of metal graze across his cheek. It left a burn underneath his flesh, his eyes whirling around to look at the metal door trapping him inside. He fumbled to his feet, crashing against the wall to properly stand himself. He headed over to the door, his hands pounding onto it furiously.

“Let me....out...” he gasped in, eyes flickering to stay awake from whatever drug they had put inside of him. His palms stretched open, holding him there steadily to resist the temptation to fall over. His eyes crawled down his fingers, and they widened to the bracelet that was decorated on his wrist. He reached, his shoulder pressing against the door, his opposite fingers trying to jerk the gray bangle off of him. A light indication of green was on it, angering Hayner even further; were they keeping track of him on this thing?

“Let me out! You’re lucky there’s a door protecting you from me!” Hayner shouted, hot forehead pressed against the icy steel. “You wouldn’t...stand a chance against me...” His body slid downwards, his entire weight plopping to the ground in defeat. His eyes rolled from his heavy daze, lips parted to gulp the cold air around him. He looked to see a flat, laughable size of a bed on the floor, a bowl of water next to it, and a single thin sheet of wool. Hayner chuckled weakly to himself, rolling his head against the door.

“They put me in a prison. Perfect.” His body nearly crawled to the mattress, and he laid himself there, grunting of the massive strain on his back. He pulled the single blanket over his head, his fingers digging into the fabric. He gritted his teeth, forcing himself to forget the heavy circumstance he was in, and more so on where he was, and how the hell he was going to get out.

“Pence...Olette....” Hayner coughed out, his eyes flickering him to slumber yet again. “I’ll get out...I’ll get out....soon.”

ASELES’ POV, LATER:

The food was flavorless and salty in her mouth, but she knew she had to eat. She scarfed it down mostly, having to take a sip of water to do so. Her eyes gazed along the wooden table, the sweat of her training lingering along her forehead and neck. The day was dragging on, the sun itself becoming a nuisance rather than comfort of the unkind vapor fogging her mind. She had let out all the steam she could, but it was not enough to calm her nerves. She tried her best to not be easily irritated, and everyone else tried their best to not get on her case.

Leon sat beside her, and he too was having trouble eating a decent meal. Dimitri and Raine were seated on her other side, Kairi and Yuffie having joined the table. Aseles did not contribute to their conversation of Twilight Town’s events, and instead listened to their concerns and worries rather than spill out her own. She already knew the dangers of traveling increased, because if Vanitas and Chad were kidnapping keyblade wielders, she, Dimitri, Raine and Kairi were all up for grabs. She was happy to hear that Leon would keep Kairi here, but it wasn’t long until he caught on what other danger lingered for Aseles.

“It’s too dangerous to send all three of them now, Leon,” Yuffie established with a motherly tone.

“Given to what happened in Twilight Town, I agree...” Leon rubbed his chin. “Aseles, you’ve been quiet.”

“Thinking,” she defended, snapping her jaws onto her meal sourly.

“I don’t think it’s a good idea to let them go anymore,” Kairi added. It struck a nerve in Aseles, but she knew Kairi’s intentions meant well. It was true; they should all stay here where it was safe...but...

“Aseles?” Leon probed her again, gently to not disrupt her calm manner.

“We have to go,” Aseles finished her last bite, pushing her plate aside. “We have no choice but to go.”

“Aseles...” Kairi looked to her worriedly, “What if they take you too?”

Aseles replied back, her voice growing louder. “I’m not risking the chance that they steal another keyblade wielder from a different world, or anyone else for that matter. I’m going, and I’ll go by myself if I have to.”

“Dimitri?” Leon looked to the rogue teen.

“I’ll follow Aseles wherever she goes,” Dimitri leaned back in his chair, crossing his arms. “If we stay, nothing will get done.”

“And if they take _you_?” Kairi fought back.

“T-they won’t,” Raine cleared her throat, pushing her fists in between her legs, “Because...I’m going too.”

Kairi sighed in complete disbelief, but Yuffie beat her to the punch to address the concern, “I don’t think it’s a good idea.”

“We’ve hit an impasse,” Leon crossed his arms, head tilted to Aseles. “But...if Aseles is willing to go, and Dimitri and Raine insist on going with her-“

“You can’t be serious, Squall,” Yuffie slammed her arms down to the table, staring at him incredulously.

“It’s Leon, and yes, I’m serious,” he countered. “I trusted Aseles to go on her own, and I’m still trusting her now.” The sentence alone was able to make Aseles feel comfortable and confident, her eyes looking to him momentarily before averting to the standing Kairi.

“I think you should think about it some more, that’s all,” she replied, and made her way out of the door. Leon bid them a goodnight and tailed after Yuffie who took a retreat outside. That left Raine, Dimitri and Aseles alone.

“Kairi looked...pretty mad,” Raine frowned.

“We understand she means well, but...” Aseles exhaled, rubbing her cheek off, “We can’t stay. We can’t wait for Sora and Riku to come back to help us. We’re doing this on our own.”

“I agree,” Dimitri commented next, standing up next. Aseles followed suite, and looked to him rapidly. Her stare held him down in his place, his orbs brewing a hint of interest.

“I think you should go check on Kairi, Raine,” Aseles suggested rather quickly. “I think she’s too mad at me to listen.”

“Oh...okay,” Raine pushed in her chair, brushing the ends of her hair tentatively, “She might be in Merlin’s Study...hmm...” She left right after, leaving Aseles to face Dimitri on her own.

“Any reason why you kicked her out?” Dimitri raised a brow, his neck craned down to look at her.

“Teach me,” Aseles confessed when she was sure no one else was in or near the house.

Dimitri’s eyes amplified by a fraction, “Excuse me?”

“Teach me...how to use Darkness.”

He crossed his arms, eyebrows furrowed downward, creating deep ravines between his eyes, “Any particular reason why?”

Aseles clenched her teeth, her fingers flexing in and out from her fists, “I need...I need to help my friends. And...I was using all of my strength, all of my forms and I still couldn’t beat Vanitas. Maybe-maybe if you teach me, I can get stronger!” Dimitri’s eyes scanned hers carefully, meticulously for a hint of doubt or hesitation. Once he was satisfied, he hummed out briefly, and shook his head.

“No.”

“W-What? Why?” Aseles spat back, “You were willing to teach me before-“

“You’re desperate I get that, but...” he quirked his mouth, “I don’t think you’re doing it for the right reasons. I don’t know-“

“Dimitri, please. _Please..._ ” Aseles prevented him a pass, her hands resisting to grip him by the front of his jacket, “Don’t...Don’t do this now. Not when I need....help.” She curled her body back, her hands scrubbing her frantic emotion off of her face.

After a moment, Dimitri sighed, “Alright. But you need to do something for me first...”

“What is that?” Aseles lifted her head.

“You need to tell me your experiences with the Darkness,” Dimitri nodded. “We don’t have a training ground right now, so I can’t teach you privately. I’m...guessing you don’t want other people to know about this..”

Aseles’ mind worked speedily, and she headed to the door, “Follow me.” Dimitri didn’t question. They scurried and strode along the ways and paths of the Borough, Aseles ducking her head around to make sure no one was following. Dimitri held his remarks to himself, but had to ask when they were passing the Bailey.

“Where are we going? The Great Maw?”

Aseles shook her head, her arms swinging at her sides, “No, not there.” They both stood in the Crystal Fissure section, “Make sure no one is watching.” Dimitri blinked, but did as he was told, scanning the path and trail carefully for any oncoming intruders. In the meantime, she hurried to the large crystal face, and shoved her keyblade into the crack. She shoved with great strength, just enough to let her pass.

“This way,” Aseles called over to him. Dimitri walked to stand beside her, and had to duck and squeeze himself to be able to fully pass. He grunted once he got in, watching Aseles lead the way down the dark and shadowed passage. At the end, his eyes observed the large, abandoned waterways and platforms, careful to watch his step going down the small bridge. They stood in the middle of the lower ground platform, Aseles drawing his eyes to her.

“Was I invited to your secret place?” Dimitri raised a brow.

“Yes...because I want your help,” Aseles nodded, hoping she wasn’t going to regret this. “Dimitri...I’m trying to hold myself together. What happened...I don’t want it to happen again..”

Dimitri’s eyes hardened, a concerned curtain draping along his face, “I understand. If I help you, you need to accept the consequence that this may or may not work. You may have harbored Darkness for a long time, but suppressing it has made it uncontrollable, abrupt and excited. If you tap into this...you need to understand what to do if you start losing control.”

Aseles nodded, “Yes, I understand.”

Dimitri waved her over, his rear sitting on the bridge nearby. She sat next to him, her hands clenching onto her knees, her legs nervously jittering and swaying beneath her. She already knew what Dimitri was waiting for, but how to put it in words was a difficult task no one had ever asked her to do. It was....so long ago, yet so fresh and undeniably revolting to relive.

“We use Darkness for different things, and different motives,” Dimitri started, coddling her in a sense of security. “I won’t judge you, if that’s what you’re afraid of...”

“It’s not that...more of trying to repress it,” Aseles exhaled, running her fingers through her loose locks. “It’s hard...It’s hard to talk about it since I rarely _do_ talk about it.”

“Take your time,” Dimitri hummed, clasping his hands together in between his open legs. His elbows rested on his knees, his broad back stretching outwards with the curve of his spine. Aseles almost smiled from how sincere he had suddenly gotten, feeling the crease of pink tickling her cheeks.

She shook her head of the ridiculous notion, and began, “When...I was younger, I had lost my dad, my home too. I ran into Sora, Donald and Goofy, and at first I didn’t want to be part...of any of this. I wanted to find my home, and that was it. I thought that maybe if I did, I didn’t have to worry about anything else, or worry about getting seriously hurt, or killed in the places I was going to. At the time, it was amazing to see these worlds, and make these friends, but looking back at it, anything could have happened to me, and I had no control over it.”

She rubbed her cheeks roughly before continuing, “This witch named Maleficent promised me I could find my family, and my home if I helped her. I did, and it felt horrible doing all of it. It was like a piece of me was dampening, it was getting heavy the more I helped her. I knew it wasn’t right, but it was the only way I thought that could help me get what I wanted. Then....”

“Mhmm...” Dimitri leaned a bit to her, his fingers stroking each other, “And?”

Aseles breathed in steadily, “This....thing, this person, Nobody possessed me from the inside. I couldn’t remember anything. I was snuffed out while she controlled my body, and made it seem like I did things to betray my friends. She made it worse....a-and when I got my body back....- jeezes...”

“Hey, hey...” Dimitri gripped onto her wrist, pulling it back from rubbing her face harshly. She regarded him, her eyes shining beneath her bangs. “It’s all in the past...remember?”

Aseles nodded firmly, her hands gripping her bare knees again, “I got...my body back, and since then, I’ve always been afraid of the dark. Darkness. I was in it, and I....couldn’t control it. I was lost inside of it, and I couldn’t get back out without some help or direction. I was lucky to even come back. I guess that’s always been a fear ever since that happened: being possessed by something obscure.”

“Yeah...I understand,” Dimitri nodded, his hands back to his own lap. “I was....a kid when I was stuck with Darkness...”

Aseles inhaled, her eyes and ears fully intent on Dimitri now, “Yeah?”

“Yeah....I had two older brothers. They were....heh,” Dimitri shrugged, a hand spreading open mindlessly in front of him. “I loved them but things changed. They...weren’t so nice to me when I got older. I thought nothing was ever going to change if I stayed, and....”

“You...left?” Aseles’ eyes widened when she saw Dimitri nod.

“I ran away, and I never went back,” Dimitri’s shoulders slumped, his neck slightly craned and eyes lazily absorbing the ground in front of him. “It was stupid but Darkness saved me; I couldn’t handle being in a place I wasn’t welcomed in. I never fitted in, and the abuse wasn’t worth it. No one should ever make you feel inferior, even those who are your blood and flesh. Darkness was a home to me, because it accepted me for who I was, and didn’t question who I was going to be.”

“That’s...horrible,” Aseles frowned, “Do you ever miss them?”

“Sometimes,” Dimitri shrugged, looking over to her, “Sometimes I wonder if they ever changed.”

“We could...be your family, if you want to,” Aseles suggested, Dimitri not leaving his gaze form her.

“No, I don’t think anyone else could ever be my family. Not like them,” Dimitri shook his head, “But...”

“But what?” she leaned, her feet tensed and intertwined against each other.

Dimitri quirked a soft smile, his eyelashes drooping ever so slightly, “A friend...isn’t so bad.” Aseles felt the warming of her organs, and the soft wash of serenity along her face. Her entire frame had stiffened, but it was futile to say that she wasn’t feeling something right now. She smiled genuinely, and it doubled when she saw Dimitri grin, and chuckle in response of her reaction.

“We’re friends now? We upgraded?” Aseles chuckled, Dimitri grinning.

“Yeah, I guess so,” he hummed, head tilting to the side. “So everyone here is like your family?”

“Uh, yeah. Leon is my adopted dad though,” she giggled, swinging her feet playfully now.

“What about everyone else? Adopted cousins, brothers and sisters?”

“Pfht, more like cousins. No one is as dark as I am,” Aseles kidded, stretching her arms out and rotating her palms.

“Hmm, what about Kairi?” Dimitri continued.

“....Yeah, she’s like a protective sister. I take that back.”

“That boy, Riku?”

“Ugh jeezes. He’s the protective big brother who keeps tabs on you every hour of the day.”

“And Sora?”

Aseles parted her mouth open....but no immediate answer came out. Her arms withdrew back into her, her eyes sliding across the ground, unable to pinpoint to a single location. Dimitri too had gone quiet, and was waiting for an answer.

“I...don’t know, actually.”

“I see,” Dimitri answered, and moved back to silence.

The air tensed, “It’s weird. He’s a really good friend, always has your back when you need it. I hope...he’s doing alright.”

“You...miss him.”

“Yeah...” Aseles added cautiously, “He would know....what to do right now, with everything going on.”

“Aseles- why did you do it?” Dimitri tersely replied. Aseles blinked in surprise, seeing Dimitri had taken a defensive position, his relaxed palms now into clubs. “Why did you give up the Mark of Mastery for him?”

“I thought- he was better suited for it than I was-“

“That’s a lie,” Dimitri’s smile disappeared, liquefied and morphed into a livid scowl. “If he knew how to handle the situation we’re in, then he should be here, and you should be in his place.”

“Why are you getting mad? You’re the one that told Yen Sid that I was the one who said to get on the gummi ship!” she stood up, and took a step back when Dimitri did the same.

“Yeah, I guess I did,” Dimitri constricted his eyes, his eyes brewing and delivering an icy stare. “What was I _thinking_?”

“Then I don’t know why you’re getting so angry! Gosh, sometimes I just can’t-“

“As a matter of fact, maybe you _should’ve_ been sent away, so I don’t have to deal with your stupid antics.”

“You..... _you_!” Aseles stomped her foot down, fuming like a bull. “I swear, Dimitri-”

“Come on, spit it out,” he taunted.

“I can’t _stand_ you,” Aseles dug her finger into Dimitri’s chest. “You’re so rude. And you give out the most horrible nicknames.”

“Horrible? _Please_ , I could’ve come up with something else. Instead, I might just call you Bossy Boots,” Dimitri flat-out stated, looking directly down to her.

“Sure, whatever makes you feel better,” Aseles cooled down, rolling her head back before lurching it forward, “Are you going to train me or not? I would rather take this anger out plummeting my keyblade against you.”

“You know you would lose a verbal battle with me,” Dimitri cockily presented his hand to her, his fingers flicking in her direction. “Tomorrow, early in the morning.”

Aseles huffed out, and nodded, “Fine. Tomorrow.”

“Early, or I will drag you out of bed myself.”

And his words heeded just that.

She was curled up in bed, dreaming of something neutral and relaxing, and she practically yelped at the sudden yank of her nakedness. The cold air jolted her away, her thoughts vulnerable to the ideas of tossing Dimitri in various fashions and methods out her window as he stood over her. His tall shadow reflected onto her bed, his eyes already adjusted to those of a cat.

Aseles flushed, curling her bare legs against herself, “What was that for!? Can’t you wake me up like a normal person???”

“It’s never too early to train,” Dimitri mused, tossing her blanket to the ground, making it unmanageable to retrieve it without getting up. “Now get up.”

“Then wait for me downstairs,” Aseles grumbled, wavering her drunken arms around to feel the table beside her. He grinned, and removed himself from the room, closing the door behind him. Aseles flailed briefly before controlling her ballistic, sleepy monster, shedding that exterior away with a cold wash to the face. She tugged and slipped out of her pajamas, shuddering of the mist of the morning fogging up her window’s frame. She put on her jumpsuit and dress, slipped on her boots, and didn’t bother to put her hair nicely up. She yawned loudly going down the stairs, her hand clamped to her mouth to prevent herself from making any noise. Once down, Dimitri was leaning against the frame of the door, his eyes lingering to her when she reached the bottom step.

“Ready?” he tilted his head, a small smirk plastered on his face.

“Whatever,” she muttered, “It’s already a bummer to skip breakfast.”

“That’ll be your reward after we’re done,” Dimitri led the way deeper into the throng of houses, and made his way up the stairs, making sure a yawning Aseles was still following. “Unless you plan to eat me first with that big mouth of yours.”

“Maybe if I snatch your neck, I’ll highly consider it.”

Dimitri was cool and serene, his hazel eyes brewing gently, “I would like to see you try.”

Perhaps this was why Dimitri was so agile and experienced in his skills; if he woke up this early every day, and still managed to train with the group in the noon and late night, of course he would behold exceptional skills with his keyblade. Aseles had seen him train with others, but she had never seen him train on his own. What kind of spectacle it would be....if she were still lying in bed and dreaming about it.

He walked down the staircase of the Bailey, and let Aseles in front to arrive in her secret hideout. After checking that the area was cleared, they pushed open the crystal doorway, and entered the cold area of heavy fog. Dimitri flashed out his keyblade, Aseles too busy rubbing her eyes and yawning again to help him clear the air. A swing of his keyblade, the dark pound discharged broke the mist, leaving them a clear field on the bottom platform of the Fountain Courts.

“We’ll do two hours of training. I’ll be impressed if you can do three.”

“I can’t say...considering I’m still asleep,” her eyes drooped along the ground, stumbling down the step and facing Dimitri.  

He chuckled at her incoherent and slurred words, “You’ll be awake in a few moments, unless you like the idea of me with a foot over you as you’re tasting the dirt.”

“Okay when you say things like that,” her eyes cut to him.

“Take a joke, Aseles. It’s called humor.”

“Crude...humor,” she whispered to herself. She gazed to see him stand punctually in front of her. His voice turned staid, “Like I said before, your Darkness has been receded for such a time, you won’t grasp the techniques I will present to you overnight. You have a chance to control it, but it’s not for sure. And if it doesn’t happen, I don’t want you to think it was because you were weak. You are only inexperienced, and that’s fine.”

“I understand,” Aseles nodded, wiping the sand from the edges of her eyes.

“Darkness is not kind to those who do not respect it.” His opened palm blossomed his fingers outwards, Aseles fully attentive to the drawing power he was organizing. She felt the hot flash run and breed onto her shoulder, her hand instinctively running back to rub off its catalyst-like touch. An odd energy was flushing out of Dimitri’s fingers, Aseles moving her digits to hover over his. However, the hot sting of fire made her withdrew her hand back, waving to cool it off.

“Too hot for you?” Dimitri hummed, evaporating the dark flower he had conjured.

“A bit, yeah.”

“You need to focus your energy; feel the Darkness along the edges of your skin, rather than in here,” Dimitri pressed his fingers against his toned chest. “Listen to it, and bring it out, like pulling long pieces of string. Close your eyes.”

She did, “Okay...”

“Breathe in...”

“Hmm...”

“And out. Repeat. Listen to what I’m saying.” Aseles stayed calm and still, feeling Dimitri move over, his body pressed against her side. His arm hooked over her shoulder, his hand holding onto her elbow, the other holding onto her wrist to extend her hand out. “Focus here...” he circled the bud of her palm, “And feel it move across your arm.”

She inhaled, and exhaled. Something invisible slithered across her stomach, making her shake. She didn’t falter though, and kept her focus on her hand, blocking away the numerous brushes along her skin.

“That’s it...in and out,” Dimitri whispered, his words playing and caressing at her ear, “Don’t let it go, don’t let it hide. Show it that you’re ready.”

_There’s much more than you could ever know….about the weapon you’re holding in your hand._

Her eyes strained, feeling a collective ball engrossing along her fingertips. The hot sensation was running up her arm, but she didn’t dare open her eyes. Instead she tried to listen to Dimitri, who locked her into his grip, his stance strong and bold to support her.

_“Do you not wish to see your world? Do you not wish to see your father?”_

“Tch...” Aseles gritted her teeth, fighting off the words that were suddenly starting to swim. She hunched her head, but remained in place. The orb in her hand continued to manifest.

_“Dear child, you think you can still play both sides?  The Darkness in you has great potential.”_

“Aseles, keep it steady,” Dimitri warned, but his voice was growing distant, silent against the darkest corners of Aseles’ walls. She squeezed her eyes tightly, feeling her shoulders tremble. Her fingers began to stir uncontrollably.

_“You are nothing but a traitor to those brats. No matter what you do, you will not be welcomed. You will forever be doubted among their ranks. You are fully alone, with no allies to face your enemies.”_

“I....ngh!” Aseles hissed out, the sweltering explosion of her emotion now draining her entire body. She crawled into herself, her fingers digging into her chest, legs kicking out the massive intake of whatever was inside her body. Her shoulder was red-hot, seeping into her like a double-edged blade.

_“Everyone who sides in Darkness will forever be in Darkness!”_

“Aseles!” Dimitri called out hurriedly, his hands holding her shoulders tightly, preventing her from falling back.

_“The Darkness!! THE TRUE DARKNESS!”_

“Ahh!” she gasped jaggedly, the small orb that had formed into her hand immediately withdrawing back inside of her. The heat resided down her broken dam, the cold rush of the morning storming her unlike any other. Her teeth chattered, her temples sweating to prove the failed effort of gathering her Darkness. Her legs became that of unsymmetrical branches, unsure which side she should favor to keep herself upright in Dimitri’s arms.

“Relax, relax!” Dimitri exhaled shakily, clamping onto her arms. She breathed out heavily, but felt her eyes dropping when she felt his head brush against hers. “Relax....you’re here. You’re still here...”

“What...happened?” she reached up, rubbing her face roughly.

Dimitri let her go, a frown in place, “You hesitated. You drew back to whatever doubts you had.”

Aseles opened her eyes, but nodded determinedly, “Again.”

“...Again?” Dimitri asked, watchful of her posture with soft, cold eyes.

She straightened, and did not deter her decision, “Again.”

FFW:

Leon was impressed of the extra work Aseles had committed herself with Dimitri, but she couldn’t help but realize she lost some feeling in her brain from the early mornings. It wasn’t a nauseating feeling, but more of a bothersome prick that followed her to different parts of her skin. It was as if she were being cooked over a stove, the oil sizzling just beneath her flesh. It was abundant and sudden, and she did her best to not scratch in hopes to make it go away. She presumed it was the Darkness, reminding her that the coming days wouldn’t be easy.

Her endurance and sustainability of holding it was growing better, but it was a slow process she was willing to stick to. It was only today that she was given leeway off of Dimitri’s Dark Camp, Leon having put him into some early tasks with Cid and the gummi ship hanger they were building in the Postern. It was a new installment, and one Aseles was most pleasured with to work on for the next week to keep herself occupied. Dimitri and her exchanged glances every often, and he would come over when she was taking a break from carrying metal parts for the walls to Cloud, Bella and Zack on the other side.

“Feeling good?” Dimitri would ask, and she would nod and ask back.

“Not bad, you?”

“Yeah, I’ll see you later?”

“The usual spot,” Aseles hurriedly replied when she passed him, the two facing opposite directions. Leon took notice of their steady relationship, Aseles quick to hide her face from him when he was eying her askance. She was glad Dimitri had not told him of their secret meetings in the Fountain Courts, and praised his knack of being a successful liar when Leon or Axel probed him. It made Raine sigh in relief that their bickers dropped, and she too began to grow more sturdily in combat. Magic was her best friend, as she had put it yesterday.

It was odd to say, but the two were neatly inseparable, or in close range of one another. Aseles might have found this weird before but she was glad of his vigilant eye. At some point she was thinking of an abrupt memory of Maleficent, particularly more of Ihara status that she had mistakenly doused her hand entirely in a dark burst. She tucked her palm into her, and almost yelled when Dimitri had skidded over and hugged her from behind. His hand clutched over hers, his fist squeezing hers tightly to put out the flame she had conjured.

“It’s the past, it’s the past,” he recited softly, Aseles blushing to feel his head press against hers. She nodded, and the two were able to muffle out the flame. She relaxed, the two parting to look at one another.

“Thanks,” Aseles blew out her bangs from her sweaty forehead, the plate she had been carrying dropped on the ground. Dimitri smiled, but the two had to double-take, looking over to see Leon, Axel, Cid, Cloud and Zack were all staring at them.

“....Should I be concerned?” Leon walked over, standing a few yards away.

“Uh- no! We were just um-“ Aseles slapped her hands at her sides, her feet fidgeting in place.

“She hurt her hand. I was checking to see if she injured it,” Dimitri picked up the metal slab she had dropped, and handed it to her. “False alarm.”

“Uh, thanks,” Aseles replied, her cheeks flushing a soft magenta.

Leon crossed his arms, the clipboard in his grasp firmly held, “I see.” Dimitri and Aseles parted without a word, leaving the others to head back to work, with Leon now shifting his eyes suspiciously between the two for the rest of the day.

Today, she was sitting on the floor in the Castle Town courtyard, her back pressed against the bricks of the gardening podiums that harbored fresh flowers and shrubs. Beside her was Stan, the two sharing a treat of ice cream from a shop in the Market Place. Aseles was immersed of the vibrant ambiance of the town, her teeth lightly grinding onto the plain, wooden stick in her mouth.

“You look like Cid,” Stan complimented with a grin.

“Do I look grumpy and impatient too?” Aseles mocked jokingly, wavering the wooden twig up and down with the slight pressure of her jaw. Stan and her laughed, her eyes forward to watch the children in front of them play jump-rope and hopscotch.

“How’s it looking out there?” Stan asked, licking the remains of his cold treat.

“They’re fine,” Aseles sighed, “Trying to get stronger before we head out again.”

“My mom...told me what happened,” Stan commented out slowly.

Aseles looked down to him, frowning visibly, “She did?”

“Well, I eavesdropped,” Stan shrugged, pursing his lips in a sour manner, his foot sliding to prompt his knee up more. “Leon came over, and they were talking about Olympus and Twilight Town. She thought I was asleep in my room.”

“I’m sorry you had to learn it that way,” Aseles replied.

“Was anyone going to tell me if I asked?” Stan swallowed his last bit of ice-cream, tucking the stick in his mouth like Aseles.

“No...probably not,” she replied honestly. “You’re still a kid; you shouldn’t be worrying about these things yet.”

“But you’re my friend...”

Aseles softened her gaze to him, “And you’re mine. We’re trying to come up with a solution.”

“You’re going tomorrow?” Stan inquired. “To save the other worlds, right?”

“Mhmm. The gummi ship hanger is fully installed.”

“And you’ll be back soon?”

“I promise.”

“Good! Shake on it!” he lifted his hand.

“Shake on what?”

“That’ll you’ll never stop giving up!” Stan smiled.

Aseles chuckled, but shook his hand, “Deal.”

“If you break it, you owe me ten ice-creams!”

“Now the stakes are high. I better get going soon.” The two laughed.

“Though....I don’t know about that guy.”

“Which guy?” Aseles blinked.

“Dimitri...” Stan fiddled with his popsicle stick, twirling it in his hands, “I don’t know. Something is off about him.”

“Hmm, maybe it’s his snarky attitude,” Aseles twirled her stick in her mouth, biting the end with her molars, “He’s been helping me a lot, but I understand some people might not get along with him.”

“Like who?” Stan asked.

“Kairi doesn’t like him that much, nor does Bella but if he can help me save the worlds, then he’s not...really a bad guy after all, right?”

Stan took a moment, but nodded, “Yeah, that’s true I suppose.”

“Yeah. Give him a chance, he’ll warm up to you,” Aseles smiled.

Stan beamed, “Alright. Oh, he’s there.” He pointed with a finger, and Aseles tracked Dimitri approaching from the far side. He stopped at the outer circle of the courtyard, signaling her to come to him.

“Ugh, I already know what he wants,” Aseles stood up, helping Stan to his feet.

“You going to kick his butt in training?” Stan posed out a fist to her.

She grinned, touching knuckles with him, “You bet. I’ll see you soon, okay?”

“Okay. Thanks for buying the groceries,” Stan leaned down, picking up the paper bags they had set down earlier. “Bye, Aseles!” He took off to a run, Aseles watching him turn the curb, and enter the street of where his house waited. She turned and rounded the group of kids playing, coming to stand in front of Dimitri who waited for her patiently.

“You really like that kid, don’t you?” Dimitri smiled, arms crossed.

“Yeah, you could say that,” Aseles replied back, stretching for a moment before swinging her arms down again. “We’re heading to the Courts?”

“Yeah. Earlier today, Leon had me arrange the supplies in the new hanger. We leave first thing tomorrow.”

“Later we’ll stock then,” Aseles agreed, walking alongside him toward the Market Place. “Leon didn’t....suspect anything, did he?”

“No, but he’s not dumb either,” Dimitri snickered, shrugging and putting his hands in the pockets of his jacket. “You’re improving a lot, more than I had anticipated.”

“What, am I impressing you?” Aseles grinned, nudging his arm with her elbow.

Dimitri waved her off, earning a small laugh from her, “Sure, sure. Should write that on a plaque and hang it on your wall.”

“Will you sign it if I do?”

“Very funny, Aseles.”

“It’s called humor. Learn it, Dark Boy.”

After sneaking past the U.S.S. and guarding the arena of where the crystal laid, the two ducked inside the secret passageway, and entered the melodic atmosphere. It was different being in here a little past noon, Aseles able to take in the nice scenery of the vines and blossoming dandelions across the cracks and depressed spaces of the floor. The sky held a bright azure, with a few clouds stretching and plumped with sweet water.

“Isn’t it kind of odd that there’s fountains without any water?” Dimitri hummed, tugging his dark jacket off, dropping it on the edge of the bridge they had leapt down from.

“How very observant of you,” Aseles rested a hand on her hip. “There may be a switch around.”

“Never bothered to check?” He walked to the center split of the two, lower stages. His eyes glanced around, but he shook his head and came back, “Nah, I don’t think so.” Aseles’ interest was triggered, her eyes scrutinizing the large scene in front of her. She headed to the base of the right platform, and signaled up with a finger. Dimitri stood beside her, eyes focused to where she was pointing.

“Maybe up there?”

“You think?” Dimitri arched a brow. “Got a feeling?”

“A lift would be nice,” Aseles stretched her feet out, “Unless you would rather coach me right now in the dark ways.”

“That would be something, wouldn’t it?” his eyes skimmed her.

“Come on, take a break won’t you?” Aseles nudged his shoulder, making his eyes focus to where she touched him, and back to her.

“Fine, Princess.”

“Another nickname?”

“Should be writing them down by now,” Dimitri smirked. He locked his fingers together, his legs ready to bend. “Up you go.” Aseles steadied herself in front of him, setting her hands on his shoulders. They met direct eye-contact, but Dimitri briskly hunched, bouncing her foot once before launching her up. She easily landed at the top platform. She was about to turn but stopped herself, feeling Dimitri brush against her side when he landed behind her.

“Show-off,” Aseles rolled her eyes, making Dimitri grin. They headed to the next and centered stage, repeating the process until they finally make it to the top, third tier. They gazed around the right platform until Dimitri signaled with a finger.

“Look, there.” A compartment door was swung open on the brick wall, and the duo paced over to inspect it. Upon pulling the wall of vines and moss, they looked at the worn, control panel, a few buttons, gauges of power, and a lever.

“It ran out of power for the currents,” Dimitri clarified, his eyes looking to the left stage across their way. “There must be a second panel over there.”

“We charge them up, and it’ll work, right?” Aseles flashed out her keyblade, pointing the tip to the section of opened brick.

“Yeah. Go for it,” Dimitri tossed an arm forward, backing up behind her. Aseles conjured a strong, Thunder spell, the copper metal sheet beside the gauges brimming with green light until the very last bar. Aseles pulled her fist back in triumph, and reached for the lever. She pulled it down full force, the sound of buzzing commencing from the vined ducts above. What Aseles didn’t anticipate was the sudden rush of cold water raining down on her, making her scream and curl into herself. Dimitri’s laugh was something she would never think of hearing, but it rang out loud and made her skin boil. She darted her eyes around, seeing he was grasping his stomach, his free hand seizing his knee for support.

“Why didn’t you warn me?!” Aseles barked to a snickering Dimitri.

“I thought it would be funny,” Dimitri confessed. Aseles narrowed her eyes, swiping her wet bangs across and squeezing her hair. “Ha ha ha! We need the next one.” Dimitri could not stop laughing, making Aseles burn that much brighter. He had calmed himself down just enough to focus on the second panel. Aseles repeated the process, and gripped onto the second lever, a hidden smirk rising on her lips. She grunted, trying to pull down on the joystick, but she left it halfway.

“It’s stuck,” she sighed dejectedly. Dimitri huffed and moved her aside, his hand clamping onto the bar and slamming it down. The buzzing sound started, and Aseles took her chance. She slammed herself against Dimitri, pinning him against the wall. He growled and tried to push her off, but he too met the same fate, and was drenched in the freezing water. He withheld his yell, his eyes a fiery rainstorm when they caught hers.

“You’re so dead!”

Aseles raced down the lower stands, careful to not trip from the following water that spread across the surfaces and mixed together at the base below. She was crying from the laughter that had exploded from her lungs, dodging to the side to escape Dimitri lunging at her. He caught her side, and the two crashed into the pool of lavender water. She coughed and flailed, sitting herself up and off of Dimitri. He was drenched to the bone, his body kneeled with his hand running up and slicking his bangs off of his damp face. Both glistened of their unintended bath...and sounded out their suppressed laughter.

“I ought to drown you in this very pool,” Dimitri grumbled out, unable to rid of the smirk attached to his joyed appearance. Aseles giggled as she stood, watching the water collect to the space beneath the bridge, and slide down the gap; the water began to flood the great meadow of the Great Maw. Her eyes glanced back to the watery courts, her eyes widening to the chutes of geyser-like umbrellas sprouting out from several sections of the stages above. It was absolutely a spectacular view, unlike one Aseles had ever seen.

“Not bad, huh?” Aseles pressed her fists against her sides, waving an arm across to the display in front of them.

“Yeah...I guess not,” Dimitri chuckled out last, a sigh escaping next. “We’ll warm up with a training session- no, Aseles. Don’t give me that look.”

“We’re soaked to the bone,” Aseles swayed her upper arm around, groaning. “Fine.”

“It’ll dry you up, I’m sure,” Dimitri ran his fingers through his wet hair, spiking them forward onto his face. Aseles grumbled, but parted her legs enough to give her a solid, upright stance. She exhaled gently, Dimitri standing beside her.

“Palm out, facing up.” The dark force collected inside Aseles much easier, more rigorous than she had expected. It must be from the excitement moments prior.

She concentrated, her chest dropping and lifting to relax her mindset. The warm sensation grew steadily along her forearm, all trickles of fire vibrating and breathing along her bones and tendons. Dimitri’s eyes were clear and transfixed, brown and green wonderfully combining to create a vortex around the center of his pupil.

“Don’t think too much about it...” he replied. “Relax your throat, your lungs.” He stepped behind her, his rough palm cupping her forearm. The other held onto her upper arm, her body coming into deep focus of where he was touching her. She inhaled slowly, feeling his wet shirt press against the back of her shoulder. His face leaned down to hers, giving enough space for her ear to be free from his.

“Relax here,” he gently squeezed her forearm, his fingers sliding up and cupping underneath her wrist, “and here.” Aseles nodded slowly, shuddering lightly as he stepped back, his rough fingertips sliding off. She let the cool air numb her skin, her eyes tensed  of the quick flash of darkness that erupted on her palm, burning into a flame. It was fully sustainable, and her eyes and mouth opened in shock.

“I-I’m-“ Aseles breathed out, the exhilaration doubling. The blaze unpredictably erupted, Aseles reeling back of the small explosion. She stumbled and waited for the impact of the pool beneath her, but Dimitri had caught her. She breathed unevenly, her hand wincing of the toxic burn that rested on her fingers. She gritted her teeth, standing on her own now.

“Hey, hey!” Dimitri gripped her shoulder, preventing her from stomping away. “We need to tend it, come here-“

“I almost- I had it!” Aseles yapped, frustrated of the failed performance. “I had it and it just-“ She bit back her tongue, feeling Dimitri pour an elixir directly onto her hand. She winced from the rising sting of hot flashes, watching the burns clear and dissolve. The green, remaining liquid streamed off her palm, spreading and stretching into the flowing water at her ankles.

“What did I tell you?” Dimitri reminded her with hard eyes.

“This is taking too long,” Aseles argued, withdrawing her hand quickly.

 He tilted his head down to her, bracing his hips with both hands, “You’re not going to get it over night. I don’t know how many times I have to tell you. If you rush it, it will get worse.”

“This is hopeless. We’re wasting time if I can’t figure something simple like this,” Aseles breathed out angrily.

Dimitri narrowed his eyes, “You think controlling Darkness is easy? That getting up at five and six in the morning is easy? Having to drag you out of bed is easy?”

“I...I didn’t mean it like that, I’m sorry,” Aseles defended, but Dimitri was now bothered.

“You might think this is easy, but it’s not an easy thing living with it. For someone who had been cradled in Light to say that it’s easy- you’re ridiculous, Aseles.” He stormed off to the small bridge near them, and snatched his jacket off from the top, “If it’s so _easy_ , you can learn it on your own.”

“Don’t walk away from me!” Aseles marched after, tugging Dimitri’s arm forcefully, making him turn to look at her. “I said I was sorry.”

“Apologizing doesn’t always get you everything, Aseles,” Dimitri snarled, tugging his jacket on with snapping hands, “Even though you’re childish, I would at least guess you would be considerate of other people’s perspectives.”

“I’m childish? _Me_? Says the one who obnoxiously pushes people’s buttons, and gives....ridiculous nicknames to everyone,” Aseles huffed out, glaring back to him. “At least when I get mad, I don’t run away.”

“What did you say?” Dimitri towered her now, his eyes threatening to cut into hers. “You’re the one who cried after that old geezer of a wizard banished you from your precious test, and disappeared to wallow in self-pity for twenty four hours. The one who kept running to save that Tron friend even though you knew the dangers you were putting us in! You kept running away to fix problems that aren’t your own because you think that’s what that rash and naïve wielder would do. Don’t you get it, Aseles?! I’m not the one who runs away, so don’t you _dare_ tell me I do!”

“You’re so unbelievable!” Aseles spat back, hands clutched tightly at her sides. “You’re the one who ran away when you were a kid! You left your family, your home! Don’t judge me Dimitri until you look at yourself closely in the mirror on your wall.” Dimitri motioned himself to press right against her, but Aseles could not stop herself, “You think you’re calm and collected, well guess what?! You’re not! You’re just as bad! You’re just as broken like anyone else here!”

“Shut up, Aseles,” Dimitri growled out, but his hands kept themselves still.

“...Make me,” Aseles glowered right back.

Dimitri leaned downward, and before Aseles could comprehend that she had been pushed back, her hands clamped onto Dimitri’s hair, and she tugged. His lips locked onto hers firmly, Aseles’ eyes wavering closed, and left her mouth openly exposed. Dimitri yanked her back in a steady grip, Aseles’ fingers motioning up and over to cling to the top of his head. She cradled him, breathing and sighing hotly along his pulling lips.

The kiss roughened and overpowered her sense of logic, only able to taste Dimitri’s cool and solid lips that held the magical properties of something fluid and rich. His wet and cold body was pressing against hers in a desperate attempt to suffocate her, but it sounded like he was the one running out of breath. His eyes flickered, drunk and lazy when Aseles ran her hands down his burning neck, and once again fastened to the back of his head where his hair had collected. She slid and tasted his lips fully, and only parted when he did, the two nearly gasping for breath.

She swallowed heavily, her cheeks burning red, “W-What are we...doing...?”

“...Making out, what else does it look like?” Dimitri rested his forehead against hers, her lips brushing and caressing along his tenderly. “Damn it, Aseles. You fucking....crap.” His arms squeezed her, making her grip onto him much tighter. The tips of her boots were barely touching the surface of the water, her entire weight having been lifted in his catch.

“Aseles, what have you done to me?” he let go of her, moving away to a secluded spot. Aseles ran her fingers along her lips, her blush blossoming down her neck and along her shoulders. “T-This wasn’t supposed to happen...”

“You think...?” Aseles stepped over, making Dimitri whirl around to stare straight at her.

“I’m not supposed to feel this way, no-“ he gripped the front of his hair, his eyes clamping shut. “I can’t feel this way...not with you.” He pressed his thumb against his mouth, riding it along the edges. “You drive me crazy, I can’t deal with you!”

“Y-You’re the one that kissed me!” Aseles defended, her body stepping back to the advancing Dimitri.

“Don’t you think I know that?!” Dimitri whispered urgently, his hands extending out. His lean fingers held onto the sides of her face, his lips parted to exhale, “I know, I know I’m the one that kissed you...That this is real, that yo-” His words were halted, and instead his mouth was put to another use when Aseles closed the gap between them.

She brushed her hands up his toned chest, her fingers spreading along his scalp, releasing the pending groan in his throat. His hands glided over her shoulders and down her back, holding her sides securely in place, accepting the idea of staying. She tiptoed, knowing that Dimitri wasn’t going to drop her.

They parted soon after, her lips plumped and pink from how many times Dimitri had kissed, sucked and bitten her tenderly. His eyes flickered open along with hers, her hands brushing along the back of his broad neck and blades of where she was sure a set of wings had been cut off from. His hands cupped her waist, his forehead resting against hers where she could feel his heartbeat racing.

“What...are you doing to me?” Dimitri released carefully, afraid to break her lips if he breathed out too hard.

“I don’t know...” Aseles sighed out in level with him, her lips pecking along his mouth as if he had fallen and bruised them seconds before. “Dimitri, what are you hiding from me? What aren’t you telling me?”

“Does it look like I’m hiding something?” he whispered, eyes half opened and jaw locked beneath his skin.

“I...can’t tell,” she blinked slowly. “You are very different...”

“Maybe...” Dimitri raised his arm up, his fingers extending out like a fan to uphold her upper back, “you can find out, if you look a little closer.” Aseles inhaled his dark husk, intoxicating herself in his presence.

“You’re going to...get me in trouble,” she managed to explain out, her fingers tugging at his hair.

“I already am in trouble,” his dark and wicked eyes bloomed with mischievous glamour, the air meek in-between their faces. His fingers grazed along her spine, “A lot of it.” They kissed hungrily, Aseles complying to press her chest into his. The hot embrace was nothing short of satisfying, the world tipping and accelerating every vessel pumping blood to her stomach. The hollow spaces between her organs filled, and for once in Aseles’ damned and sad life, she felt completely at peace, rewarded with something that did not involve grief, anger or doubt. And how she wished it lasted longer.

The sound of booming detonated in the sky, the two swiftly parting to look up toward the falling gummi ship overhead. Aseles gasped and ducked her head, Dimitri quick to shield her. They shot their eyes toward the large plain of the Great Maw, hearing the sound of something splashing, the rough impact of the ground breaking from the force. The spiraling smoke steered to the fallen machine nearby.

“C’mon!” Aseles cut away from Dimitri, climbing over the bridge with a jumping splash. She took off into a run, nearly scraping herself when she pushed past the crystal, Dimitri not bothering to close it behind him. The two sprinted around the end of the trail, both shocked of the two bodies that were desperately trying to reach the new shoreline. Aseles skidded down the steep hill, Dimitri following suite. They paddled with great haste until Aseles reached them first.

“Donald, Goofy!” The duck was unconscious, her arms taking her friend in while Dimitri aided to help Goofy to stay afloat.

“What happened?!” Dimitri questioned urgently when they got to the shore. Both of her friends were laid on the ground, Goofy coughing out the water that invaded his lungs. He was paled slightly, Donald immobile but breathing steadily.

“What happened? Goofy??” her eyes pleaded to him, her arm hooking underneath his shoulders.

“We were ambushed...” Goofy started, his eyes lifting slowly.

“Ambushed by who??” Dimitri pressed on.

She and him exchanged glances, but she wasn’t ready for what Goofy finished with, “Maleficent...she overthrew Disney Castle.”


	22. Reunion

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ohhh boy. Thanks for my gal for helping me out on this chapter (she is the voice of reason when my brain farts).
> 
> Okay, I might have miscalculated my main focuses for this story. This story might end in less than 10 chapters (if I had to guess....maybe 4 or 5. I'm freaking out honestly). I cut out...a TON of things, things I didn't want to focus on, things I didn't even need anymore. From here on out, most of the chapters will contain new content for those who've read this story before (meaning slower updates might be a thing until the end, but rest assured this will be finished before summer ends). For those new to Aseles' story, cheers, because I'm going to rip hearts out and laugh about it to cope with my decisions. 
> 
> Thanks so much for the support guys, the latest chapter was flooded with new reads, and I barely checked today to see it was far beyond anything I have seen. You guys excited as I am? Let's cry together, I have like five boxes of tissues for all the tears that are about to be unleashed. Have a great weekend guys!
> 
> Sincerely,  
> Keys :DD

VANITAS’ POV:

“Everything is going as planned.” His amber eyes shifted to the older gentleman dressed in a draping cloak, his black boots walking him forward to stare down from the rocky platform they stood on. The cavern was very silent, just to his liking.

“She really is naïve. How far for you think she’ll make it?” Vanitas raised an eyebrow, staring at the man with a slight smirk.

“Enough for my use.”

“You’re giving her too much credit. She won’t last. She’ll break,” Vanitas scoffed, crossing his arms.

“Fate has a way of changing things. Those who forget the past are destined to repeat it, boy. Don’t doubt my certainty.” Vanitas’ face turned to that of being stern, looking off to the side.

“Now bring me the witch; my effort must occur flawlessly. It seems my plans for Sora and Riku are going as planned, but I want to make sure of my…other option.”

 

ASELES' POV, AT THE USS:

The room was in utter silence, or more so no one knew how to address the situation first. Aerith was aiding Donald and Goofy in Merlin’s Study, alongside with Yuffie and Cid. That left the remaining group in the main facility, seated anxiously for Leon’s further direction. Leon stood with hands gripping the head of his chair, at the center and end of the table. Aseles had taken the space near the middle, Dimitri unsurprisingly at her left. Her hand was gripping her mouth, because in addition to what was transpiring, she couldn’t shake the thought of her and Dimitri kissing not that long ago.

It was something Aseles did not expect, nor one she planned; last time she ever kissed anyone was Sora, but that was something done out of sheer spontaneous fear. It wasn’t a _real_ kiss, but…it still counted, she guessed. No, the kiss with Dimitri, that was history and emotion all thrust in a desperate shove of need and frustration. She was pent up, bothered and annoyed…but damn it was the best kiss she ever had. Did he feel the same way? She wasn’t sure, considering he was upset that they even kissed, but shut up when she kissed him back. He wasn’t in much of a hurry to finish it…

Her eyes glanced over to the side, and burned when they met his directly without missing a beat. He too was struck for any words; there was no hint of any grin, smirk or taunting remark readied. His eyes lowered along her face, searching where her hand rested on her mouth. She moved her attention to Leon who finally stirred, hoping no one else was paying attention to her or Dimitri. This was not the time and place for Axel to make a commotion if he suspected anything.

“How is he?” Kairi asked first, taking the position across from Aseles.

“They’re recovering," Leon announced to her before expanding his view to everyone else. “All that Goofy managed to say was that Maleficent had taken refuge inside the walls of Disney Castle. He and Donald were sent by Yen Sid to investigate, but were outnumbered by the Substitutions that raided the grounds. Her Majesty, Queen Daisy and Merlin are in her custody.”

Axel drew out the next line, “Why would Substitutions be working for Maleficent?”

Leon shook his head, “No idea, but it’s information we need to work with.”

“We have to do something,” Aseles darted her arms out, “We can’t sit around here and wait for something to happen.” She stood up, feeling Dimitri and Raine stand up with her.

“Don’t you think we need to come up with a plan to do this?” Kairi chipped in, and she too stood. Aseles glanced over to her, and for once in her life, she saw they were combating each other through sight. Kairi was firm in her place, and the last thing Aseles wanted was to argue with her in front of everyone. This wasn’t the place, nor the time.

“I understand the urgency, but we need to take into consideration of the prisoners she has,” Leon pointed out, “Aseles, it’s risky. The layout of the castle is huge. A successful mission inside- we can’t leave that up to chance.”

“You won’t be, because _I’m_ going.” Aseles boldly replied, grabbing everyone’s eyes to her now. “You trusted me to leave before, don’t change your mind now. I have Dimitri and Raine with me-“

“They don’t know the layout of the castle like you do,” Kairi urged.

Aseles shot her a glance, “I know, but it’s a risk we’ll have to take. We don’t know what she’s doing inside, or worse, she’s messing with the Cornerstone! The more we wait, the less of a chance we have to break in.”

“She has a point,” Axel strode over, placing a hand on top of Aseles’ head, gaining a heavy sigh from Kairi’s direction. “Leon, let her go. She can handle it.”

Leon regarded Axel’s words, then they descended to the brunette, “Can you, Aseles?”

She nodded, fist punching into her hand, “Leave it to us.”

Leon considered for a moment, but agreed with a satisfied smile, “Then it’s settled. Aseles, Dimitri, Raine. Disney Castle is in your hands. You can head to the Hanger at once, and restock on potions, ethers and elixirs there.

“Let’s go,” Aseles urged. “Thanks, Axel.”

“Be careful,” he reached and embraced her with a single arm around her shoulders, “Get back safely, and show that witch a thing or two.”

“Right. Let’s go, guys,” she walked forward, beginning to round the table with Dimitri and Raine sticking right behind her.

“Aseles!” Kairi called out to her, but she didn’t listen, and instead strode out of the hallway. Once outside, they set their sights toward the platform of the Postern up ahead. “Aseles!”

She stopped this time, letting Dimitri and Raine pass her a bit before turning. Kairi ran and stopped to stand in front of her.

“Kairi, I can’t waste any more time-“

“Aseles, don’t go,” Kairi shook her head, her teeth clenching to suppress the angry cry she wanted to release. “It’s too dangerous. What if something happens to you? What if we can’t help you?”

“I’ll be fine. Please watch Donald and Goofy. They need one of us to watch after them,” Aseles tried to deter the argument.

Kairi opened her mouth, trying one last time, “If something happens to you, what do I tell Sora?”

Aseles stopped, her eyes scanning Kairi’s withheld expression. She felt the gears in her head cranking, deciphering the words in her mind. She mentioned...she mentioned Sora, and only Sora. But....why? Something about that…bothered Aseles, but she shook it off, knowing Sora was not important right now. No, not right now, he was handling his test, and she was handling this situation right now.

“What do I tell them if something happens to you?” Kairi insisted on, seeing she had caught Aseles in her net. “Sora and Riku wouldn’t want you to go. Not without them.” Aseles looked over to see Dimitri had motioned his way over, and slid right along her side. His eyes nearly pierced into Kairi’s, making the redhead backup a step.

“Nothing will happen to her, because _I’m_ with her.” Aseles felt the constricting knot pulling down her throat, and it heaved greater when she saw Kairi stomp her foot down in Dimitri’s direction. No, they couldn’t be fighting right now! She had to ease the situation, somehow.

“You’re not in this conversation! I wasn’t talking to you!” Kairi retaliated.

“Now you are,” Dimitri pressured, his stare unwavering and solid. “Aseles is with _me_ , and Raine. She’ll be safe with us, and we’re not going to stop her from doing what she thinks is right.”

“You’re a bad influence on her!” Kairi argued, making Aseles’ eyes widen of the sudden accusation. “I knew from the moment I saw you!”

Dimitri remained in place, “If I were, she wouldn’t want me following her now, would she?” A defeated shade eroded in Kairi’s stance, her eyes ducking down to look at Aseles. Raine shifted in her place uncomfortably, having no way of disarming the tension between the two.

Aseles bit the inside of her mouth before blurting out her answer to Kairi, “Sora...or Riku are not here to help us. I can’t wait for them. I won’t wait for them like...you. I’m not you, Kairi. I’m sorry.” She stepped back, Kairi’s eyes flickering to reply with a fact, a reason to make Aseles stay or refute her statement. When she opened her mouth...there was none; Aseles knew there wouldn’t be. She dug too deep, too raw for Kairi to argue against; they were not coming anytime soon, they were not going to rescue them this time. Aseles tore herself away from her view, and sprinted up the path, seeing Raine and Dimitri right alongside her.

“Don’t you think that was a little...harsh?” Raine countered once they were inside the first corridor.

“Someone had to tell her, and Aseles didn’t stop me,” Dimitri didn’t bother to glance at her, instead focused in front.

“Aseles?” Raine interrogated next.

She chewed on her tongue before replying firmly, “She wanted an answer, and Dimitri gave it to her. I can be lectured about it later.” Raine kept quiet, trailing after the two as they headed inside the Computer Room, and down the elevator to the bottom floor of where the new Hanger awaited. It was time to face and finish Maleficent, once and for all.

YEN SID’S POV:

The sky had taken a reluctant retreat to shower his view of any stars. The clouds blurred and built above his tower, his eyes studying the soft storm that was commencing. His hands rested on the arms of his chair, but they slightly clenched at the wood once in a while. He knew he should go check up on Riku and Sora who laid unconscious in the Mark of Mastery room, having been extra cautious to bind them in a shield that was challenging to break.

His glass eyes monitored over to his desk again, turning his chair to face the room properly. His tented hands pressed against his chin and mouth, a breath of air drilling out of his lungs. He had sent His Majesty to check on the status of his castle, having noticed that a heavy aroma lingered along the barrier of the world. He was growing worried he had not received any word back.

His eyes caught to the book at his left, eyes slits and glowing in the dusk room, trusting that his decision to send him was correct. Yet....

_“It’s just….I wanted her to be here….”_

He pressed his eyes shut.

“ _I wanted her to be here…more than anything.”_

No...it could not be.

_“Why do I feel…that this isn’t the right thing to do?”_

He made the right choice to banish her. It was the correct thing to do. He made no mistake; she had broken a rule he upheld for so long, since the beginning of his time. He knew the consequences of interference, if the Keyblade War had taught him anything. And yet...

_“Because…Sora. You’re probably right.”_

Why was he doubting himself now?

ASELES’ POV, LATER:

Landing the ship unnoticed was relatively difficult, the entire town of the castle coated in a black murkiness of sorts. The trio maneuvered their way easily into an nearby alleyway and followed it to reach the grand square. Hugging the wall, Aseles looked through the wooden pavilion, lampposts and benches that laid dead center, the windows of shops and houses shrouded in heavy mist. The sides of the posterns were overgrown with spiked vines, some continuously growing over the rooftops and cracks of the place.

“Shh,” Aseles whispered, pressing her arm firmly against a leaning Dimitri and Raine. They all froze, vigilantly watching the crow circling from above, its beady eyes browsing the area for any sign of life or movement. After a few circles, it headed north. Aseles trailed after it, seeing it hover and disappear behind the large gates. The high towers were casted a shining green and ebony, a lavender swirl of clouds surrounding it.

“We have to find a discreet way inside,” Aseles exhaled. “Come on.” The three stuck closely to the buildings on the right side. They paused at the sound of footsteps, and armor clanking gently from nearby. They must be patrolling the area inside the main courtyard.

“There’s no backway to get inside?” Dimitri questioned next, more concerned of the crow coming back and finding in plain sight.

“There’s a Hanger for gummi ships, but I doubt they left it open for us to waltz in,” Aseles peeked from the edge of the wall, watching the solid gates carefully. “But if we can sneak inside, we can enter the garden that’s just outside of it. It would lead us right inside the castle walls.”

“Then we just need someone to open the door so we can sneak in,” Raine pointed. On cue, an armored figure slid past the opening of the door, and left it open behind her.

“I’ll be back, I’ll do a quick round,” the girl replied.

“Knock twice so I can open it for you.” The door closed, and the girl strode along the circular pathway, headed in their direction with keyblade drawn out. The trio drew back, backs pressed firmly against the store.

“Grab her attention,” Aseles replied. Dimitri suddenly snatched Raine from her side, and lifted her back easily with both of his hands.

“W-Wait!” Raine screeched out, tossed onto the nearest set of bushes in the small park in front of them. Aseles stared at Dimitri in utter disbelief.

“I got her attention,” he defended.

“That doesn’t mean you toss-“

“Shh!” Dimitri covered her mouth, the two standing still to see that the Substitute girl had frozen, her eyes lingering along Raine’s groaning and feebly moving body.

“Who’s there??” the girl called out, weapon drawn out.

“Help…” Raine reached out with a hand, flailing it for something to pull her out. The girl’s expression was hidden beneath her curved mask, but the dash signified she was hurrying to go help Raine out. The girl placed her keyblade against the ground, her free hand gripping onto Raine’s. The blue-haired wielder grunted when she was pulled out, sighing miserably at the twigs stuck in her hair.

“Ow, my head,” Raine massaged the back of her head, eyes shut.

“Who are-“ the girl had no time to finish, Dimitri’s arm instinctively wrapped around her neck, tugging her into a stone headlock. His arm bulged to press further into her neck, her arms becoming limp. Her keyblade clattered to the ground, her body now sleeping soundly in Dimitri’s grasp.  

“Did you really have to throw me?” Raine slapped her hand across Dimitri’s broad shoulder.

“It worked, didn’t it?” he moved to put the girl in the near alleyway. Aseles came over, sweatdropping of Dimitri’s simple answer.

“Here, let me, there,” she tugged off the last stick from Raine’s hair.

“Thank you, Aseles,” Raine nodded. The two looked over to see Dimitri had seated the girl inside a nearby barrel, closing the lid with a clockwise seal.

Aseles motioned to pick up the keyblade she had dropped, “Ready?”

“Ready,” Dimitri smirked. A swift knock on the door, and an abandoned keyblade on the ground brought out the second, armored guard. He was quickly overpowered by Dimitri, tossed and laid against the same alleyway. Aseles stood attentive by the door, peering in with a nervous Raine clutched behind her. Inside, a long stretch of pavement led to the castle’s formal entry, an expansive garden occupied by walking bodies of armored Substitutes. Aseles caught eye of the long lines of bushes shrouding against the walls.

“Hurry!” Aseles ordered, tossing herself to the ground into the left side of bushes. She landed roughly, but almost groaned loudly when Raine had tripped, and landed right on top of her. Dimitri scurried in haste, crouching and nearly pressing against the two.

“I didn’t think you were so heavy…” Aseles grunted.

“S-Sorry!”

“Get going!” he hissed, Aseles quickly to crawl forward on all fours. She looked back to see Raine trailing behind, Dimitri having to fully crawl belly-first from his shoulders being seen from the top of the vegetation.

“There’s nothing but wall up ahead,” Raine replied lowly from behind.

“Yeah, haven’t thought about that…” Aseles’ voice dropped, and she halted, pressing against the wall flatly. Raine fell quiet, Dimitri glaring up at the striding Substitutes headed their way.

“So what does this witch want us to do?” the one male closest to their side asked. “I don’t know why we ended up being here, anyways.”

“Hey, it’s better than being in that other place...you know that,” the second male responded with a flinch. What other place?

“That’s true....”

“Besides, we took over this world like nothing. That’s more than what that old geezer wanted us to do. Patrolling the cells all day and all night like those prisoners could ever get out.” Aseles eyes narrowed, her brain registering and filing the new information. Were they mentioning Hayner? No, were there others that had already been kidnapped?

“Still...”

“Hey, has Natalia reported back yet?”

“Not yet, I think she’s still scavenging around the town. But…I thought the Rozario went to go fetch her….” The conversation grew distant, Aseles taking a moment before moving again. Suddenly, the entire courtyard was running in a specific direction, the three trespassers picking their heads up to see them all cut outside. It sounded like someone had discovered the abandoned keyblade of the girl, all recruitments scavenging the front.

“Through the doors!” Dimitri suggested, the group now running to the marble-decorated front. An abrupt caw rang through the air, Aseles’ eyes shooting up to see Maleficent’s crow had reappeared, and spotted them making a run for it. The entire fleet of guards withdrew back inside, but Aseles was not waiting to be introduced to them. She hurried Raine to head inside, and she slammed the door closed once Dimtiri was in. Her and Raine stood side by side, and coated the entire wall in a strong Blizzard, trapping the guards outside.

Now in the main Courtyard, Aseles’ eyes scanned the balcony above, seeing little movement along the thorns surrounding and cupping around the marble exteriors of the castle. Aseles gestured Raine and Dimitri to stick close, making a break for the doors on the other side of the damaged and grayed foliage. Behind Aseles heard the sound of the ice cracking, the Substitutes from the other side breaking entry.

“This way!” Aseles pulled the doors open, following behind her group. The three halted immediately, their eyes watching the various passageways laid before them. All entered dark corridors, Aseles gritting her teeth, “She must have enchanted them to make it harder to get to her.”

“You better pick a way unless you want to fight a whole group of guards instead!” Dimitri urged.

“This way!” Aseles took a sprint down the center passageway, her feet thudding softly along the sea of red carpet.

“Which way did they go?!” a commanding, shrewd voice echoed from down the pathway.

“You’ve got to be kidding me,” Aseles groaned out, seeing they were coming to a fork at the end of their passageway.

“Intruders!” A wave of four fighters ejected from the left side, but there was not enough time to skip past them. Aseles outdrew her keyblade, Dimitri and Raine following her example. Keyblades clashed upon faux ones, Aseles tossing back and slicing her opponent’s straight down. Dimitri pushed off his two, offending fighters while Raine toppled hers to the ground, sticking the girl to the floor with a blast of ice around her shoulders and knees. Aseles left her weaponless foe against the wall, Dimitri’s scattered and hitting the opposite wall.

“The right!” he insisted, the trio regrouping and running inside the dim hallway.

“There they are! Don’t let them get away!” Aseles sprinted full pace, only stopping to inspect the second fork they ran into.

“The left,” Dimitri breathed out. They jogged in steady pace, but came to a stop when they no longer could. Aseles pressed herself against the wall, holding onto her knees with Raine refusing to slump onto the ground. Her hand shook when she gripped her chest. Dimitri breathed heavily, his eyes cautiously looking back and forth between their entry and possible exit.

“It feels like we’re running in circles,” he complained, huffing out exasperatedly.

“Oh my. What is this?” The three stilled, their eyes shooting up to the darkening ceiling and walls. The taunting voice from above echoed, the sound of soft chimes crinkling almost inaudibly, “It appears we have rats in _my_ castle.” The ringing grew louder, sounding a lot like rusted chains.

“Wherever you are, Maleficent, we’ll stop you!” Aseles cried out, all keyblades drawn.

“Is that so? I’m afraid we need to part ways. But of course, you never learn the first time, do you?” Maleficent sung out, “Once upon a time, there was a little girl, but so lost and scared was she. She didn’t know what to do, _oh_ , she did not know what to do.” The walls seeped with dark ink, Aseles finding her back pressed against Dimitri and Raine. Her breath split and cracked, but she remained in her stance, knowing, feeling Maleficent was only trying to get underneath her skin.

“I naturally offered her a solution, and how foolish she was to accept it without a second thought.”

“That’s not-“ she inhaled, her eyes widening at the view of the consumed hallway. The chimes grew louder, the distortion of the hallway warping and twisting. It felt like someone had tossed her in a blender, and set the system on high. She didn’t know which end was the exit, the memories in her head starting to flood her sense of touch.

“And despite all her efforts, of this false title of _hero_ , she lost everything. How sad and tragic of a story!” the laugh rung out, making Aseles’ knees buckle and shake.

“Aseles, don’t listen to her,” Dimitri’s hand gripped onto her wrist. Her eyes wandered to him, seeing him shake his head defiantly, “She’s messing with you. We came to rescue your friends. Understand?”

“I understand…” Aseles breathed in, nodding once. Her face drew out, aimed to the dark space in front of her. “Wherever you are, we’ll find you Maleficent, and we’ll finish you off!”

“Is that so?” The ringing of chains halted, all eyes gliding along the obscure ceiling above them. Aseles shifted, the only light on the floor of where her group stood in. A moving, large shadow lingered above them, her eyes widening to the pair of yellow ovals.

Before she could gasp, streams of chains shot forward, each one grappling at her waist. Raine’s scream bounced off the walls as Dimitri yelled in surprise, all three pulled into the darkness. Aseles expected the impact to the ceiling, but instead she was swinging back and forth, her legs kicking her wildly beneath her, keyblade now interlocked in both of her hands. She felt the slapping of ringing chains about her, hearing something metallic chomping in the black abyss. She could hear Dimitri grunting nearby, Raine whining to be let go.

“Fire!” A ring of flames lit around Aseles, roaring out to light up the rest of the circular, concave area. In the center of the hoard of chains was a Heartless shaped like a chandelier, metal jaws snapping energetically. It spun erratically in place, Aseles gripping onto the chain arm around her to prevent her from spinning from the momentum. The Heartless halted, the chains around Aseles swaying back and forth. She swung her keyblade to block the metal jaws from taking a bite out of her, making it dart its attention to Raine next. She too wasn’t accepting the idea of being a meal, and knocked the ball downward, making it rotate and spin in place. When it came into Dimitri’s view, he sent a chaotic wave of Darkness, getting a successful strike at its eyes. It shrieked from the spell, its chains flopping the gang up and down forcefully. Aseles seethed, feeling the already forming bruises threatening to suffocate her in a corset.

“Freeze!” Aseles pointed the head of her keyblade above, locking it to the chains. A contagious frost climbed up the shackles, the movement of Aseles’ chains ceasing. The Heartless jerked its head back and forth, but it could not regain the movement of its extended arm. Aseles took the advantage, and propelled her body with a rapid fire blast. With enough motion, Aseles swung and slashed against the lantern Heartless. Raine and Dimitri copied her method, and in a matter of moments they had the Heartless at their mercy.

The Heartless’ head burned madly, the area fully lit. The ice along the chains swam down, the jingling mobile again. They dropped a few yards down, making the trio shout out in surprise. The Heartless grew frantic, firing out large orbs of fire in various directions. Aseles swung her frosted keyblade in defense, Dimitri slashing out waves and walls of Darkness to keep him and Raine safe. The monster screeched from the continuous backfires, the chains dropping again from the trio’s efforts for escape.

Aseles swung her legs back, feet against the wall, “Spin!” She ran to the right, Raine running in her direction with Dimitri following behind her. The chains interlocked and twisted the Heartless in its one spot, its jaws mangled in its extensively long arms.  
“Blizzard!” Aseles and Raine pointed up from their close dangle to the Heartless’ bottom. Dimitri swung above, and rammed his keyblade with a heavy and forceful dark wave. The crack of metal rained down, the group freefalling to the carpet floor. Aseles tugged Raine to her, her free hand slamming her keyblade’s head against the wall. They slowed down drastically, Dimitri doing the same on the opposite wall. They reached the group, making a sprint down the hallway, dodging the heavy, pouring iron.

“Wait, wait, wait!” Dimitri skidded to a halt, his hand gripping into Aseles’ arm who in turn gripped Raine back.

“Why are we stopping?!” Raine whispered out, her eyes darting down the hallway where the clanking footsteps were approaching from. Dimitri’s hand clamped onto the edge of a separated part of the wall. His eyes narrowed, and he pulled forcefully, prying the secret compartment open.

“Inside!” Aseles tugged Raine with her, Dimitri last as he tugged the secret door toward them. It closed with a slam, rattling the walls around them. Dust and smoke rained onto them, making the three cough roughly of the particles invading their nostrils and mouths. The entire passageway was pitch black, but the team did not move until the running steps cleared past them, and continued down their way. Aseles’ shallow breaths resonated with Raine’s, Dimitri the only composed figure. A few seconds later, Aseles drew out her keyblade, igniting a flame at the head. It lit the corridor nicely, presenting the curving strip before them.

“At least we dodged the guards,” Aseles relaxed her shoulders, waving Raine and Dimitri to follow her.

“This Maleficent is persistent to keep us away,” Raine started, her hand reaching to wipe her forehead off.

“Maleficent is someone to be reckoned with,” Aseles replied, her head declining back slightly. She rolled her shoulders, trying to ease the strain there, “She won’t stop until she makes sure we leave or….you know.”

“Here.” Dimitri came in between her and Raine, his hand holding out a potion. Aseles let Raine take the first one, and she took the second.

Within the final gulp of the nutritious supplement, Aseles felt instantly rejuvenated, “Thanks.”

“It sounds like this woman has been a constant hassle,” Raine frowned.

Aseles shook her head briefly, a firm scowl emerging, “You have no idea. But…what I don’t get is, those Substitutes joined her willingly. Wherever they were…whoever was commanding them is who we’re after.”

“That does sound…odd,” Dimitri lifted his hand, holding his chin with his eyes regarding the floor. “Whoever was in charge of them before didn’t appear to reward them properly, if they left so easily. But…”

“Yeah??” Aseles stopped, looking over to him alongside Raine.

Dimitri scowled, “How did this Maleficent run into their ex-leader? Doesn’t it sound suspicious? It couldn’t have possibly been done so easily. And she got away with so much militia of Substitutes?”

“Yeah…that makes sense,” Aseles frowned, scratching her cheek with her free hand, “Maybe we’ll figure it out once we run into Maleficent, or if we capture some of the Subs here and interrogate them back in Radiant Garden.” The crackling file occupied their hearing, but the calmed atmosphere was interrupted by the sound of various voices conversing with each other. Aseles immediately doused out the flame, her back pressing against the cold wall. Her eyes looked to the section of the wall that was backlit from around the edges. It was lit enough to indicate she had hit a different area with her team.

“I think we can open that,” Dimitri nodded, gently pushing Aseles behind him. His hands clamped onto the edge of the wall, and he began to push forcefully, a grunt escaping his clenched teeth. Aseles watched the dim light consume their dark entryway.

Dimitri tucked his head around the edges, “Coast is clear.” Aseles and Raine peeked out, Aseles’ eyes catching sight of the pair of doors at her left, closest to Raine. Aseles rounded and entered the passageway. She opened the chained lock with her keyblade, and pushed open the doors. Inside she inspected the dome-shaped room, a various set of lanterns set in front of the various brigs stationed about downstairs. Aseles’ ears picked up the sound of that familiar, high-pitched voice, and she rushed to skip down the stairs. She reached the bottom, seeing the prison-made brigs were occupied with the residents of the castle, include Minnie, Daisy, and Merlin.

“Aseles!” Minnie cried out in joy, her gloved hands gripping onto the cold metal bars. Aseles kneeled over swiftly, her hands gripping the mouse’s palms. “You’re here!”

“We’re so glad to see you!” Daisy clapped her hands eagerly, Merlin coughing in surprise and having to adjust his glasses.

“I dare say, I didn’t expect you to arrive!” Merlin stood next, a smile spreading across his face.

Aseles frowned at the sight of Minnie’s torn dress, her ribbons dismantled and dirty with grime, same with Daisy’s. And yet, Her Highness still held a glimmering essence of light in this dark abyss of a jail. Hundreds of sticks bolted up from the opposite jail cell, the enchanted broomsticks and mops swishing continuously in the same place.

“Oh boy! We got rescuers!” Two little boys dashed from behind Minnie and Daisy, both gripping the bars and looking up to Aseles. They were both fit in a shirt, shorts and sneakers, one in particular with scruffy hair and drooping ears (who looked _awfully_ familiar) while one in purple had cat ears (who _also_ resembled someone). Pluto had stuck himself beside Minnie, an excited pant exhaling out at Dimitri and Raine walking over.

Dimitri’s hand grabbing Aseles’ upper arm, “We need to get moving.”

“Right,” Aseles nodded. She pointed the head of her keyblade against the keyhole of their cell. The lock gave way with a shine of light, and opened. Dimitri was far too impatient, and rammed his keyblade downward, causing the cell door to jam open for the enchanted, castle equipment. All prisoners were released, but Aseles was keen on listening to Minnie when she tugged her hand down.

“Oh Aseles, you must hurry!” Minnie pleaded. “Maleficent has Mickey and Pete in the room where the Cornerstone is.” The room feel deadly quiet, all eyes lingering upon the upset Queen.

Aseles kneeled properly beside her, tasting the venom seeping across her back and shoulder, “Do you know where that is? Maleficent enchanted the hallways, so we were thrown in a labyrinth of passageways.”

“Take this,” Minnie reached into the side folds of her dress, pulling out a glass sphere. Inside, a hidden, ghost white galaxy laid twinkling, warm and vibrant unlike any dawn Aseles laid eyes on. “With this Holy Sphere, the maze cursed on the castle will begin to tear open, and it will show you the way. I don’t have enough magic within me, but I know you can pull it off, Aseles. Please, you must save Mickey and Pete!”

“I will,” Aseles cupped the ball of magic tightly. Suddenly the sound of clanking armor and shouts wavered from down hallway they had skipped around.

“They’re coming!” Raine alerted, her head turning back to the group from peeking through the door.

“The secret passage,” Dimitri answered, “Aseles, let’s go.” She held onto Minnie’s hand, and guided the royal Queen across the open dome of the floor. Her subjects, Daisy, Merlin and the two boys with Pluto gave pursuit; Dimitri hauled open the hidden doorway, Raine now the lookout with her keyblade drawn readily.  

“Stay hidden until we’ve removed Maleficent,” Aseles advised, pulling out several potions for Daisy and Merlin to take.

“Please be careful,” Minnie nodded fervently, clasping her hands together. “We’re counting on you!” Both Dimitri and Aseles rushed to closed the door shut, Raine now battling the onslaught of Substitutions rushing down the stone staircase across the way.

She swung her keyblade and pointed it upwards to where they passing, “Thunder!” Electrics arms and fingers slammed and struck onto the foes, rendering them defenseless and leaning against the walls.

“Follow me!” Aseles ordered out, sprinting through the divide of the tossed wielders. Raine sent a barricade of ice attacks, forming an ice barrier to slow down the group. The clanking of metal arose once again, Aseles leading her team in the opposite direction. It wasn’t long until they hit another fork in the way. Aseles refused to take her chances this time; she held up the orb Minnie had given her, and shut her eyes when it layered the entire view in front of them. The two pathways fused into one, the darkened walls coloring to their traditional presence.

“This way!” Aseles advised, taking off into a hurried run. Up ahead, the sound of charging, armored warriors was steadily growing, all three actively pointing their keyblade forward.

“Finish them!” Maleficent’s voice echoed, “They’re headed for the Main Hall!” Bodies ahead created a barrier, intercepting the group’s path.

“Halt!” the leader of the Substitutes barked out, keyblade pointed directly at the team. Aseles and her team skidded to a stop, but not to the threat they posed. Aseles’ eyes looked behind the barricade, smirking at the view of the hundreds of mops, accompanied with buckets and enchanted brooms and pans. Merlin stood in front of the group, having retrieved his wand. He jigged and danced in place, swishing his glittering wand to and fro.

“Swiggity swish, and here we go!” Merlin tossed his hands forward, the Substitutions darting around at the mention of his spell. The buckets launched with accuracy, the water splattering and washing across the rug. The Substitutions ducked to avoid the soapy water, but were next tossed backwards, brooms and mops attacking full force.

“Now’s our chance!” Raine interjected. Aseles jumped and leapt overhead, dodging the struggling and fighting group of foes. Dimitri cleared the path, tugging Raine with him; all three nodded to Merlin.

“The doors are up ahead!” the wizard advised. In matter of seconds, Aseles’ running footsteps carried her to the enormous and towering lavender doors, wreathed in vicious and jaggedly vines. She shot her occupied hand upwards, the sphere illuminating with a sharp glow. The vines glowed and burned from the bright light, allowing passage into the room. The orb dissolved in her hand, ended with its last use. She nearly slammed the door opened, keyblade ready in hand.

She shot out to the middle of the chamber, a brooding energy lavishing across the floor and spiked, cracked walls. The floor was shrouded in a green afterglow, the buttresses and bases of the columns colored a rough lavender. Ahead is where Aseles’ eyes laid, upon the all-too-familiar and slender silhouette sitting patiently on the throne. In Maleficent’s hand was her staff, her reliant crow seated at the helm of the orb on top. It cawed angrily at the pausing group. However, a sinister presence overshadowed Maleficent that only her eyes were glowing; a malicious smile curved her lips, her neck craning forward to acknowledge the trio’s presence.

“It’s over, Maleficent!” Aseles shouted out, keyblade pointed to the witch. “Where is Mickey and Pete?”

“What a pleasant surprise, Aseles,” Maleficent cooed out, her nails clinking along her staff’s top. The crow planted its talons strongly onto her wrist, but she didn’t seem to mind. She leisurely rose to her feet, the cape around her shoulders extending out like an awakening wing of a bat. Aseles held her position, refusing to let her hesitation get the better of her. It grew worse when Maleficent’s giggled blared into a full cackling scream.

“A-Aseles!” Raine tugged at her arm, her eyes meeting up the ceiling. Dimitri and Aseles followed her gaze, but she instantly paled to see various vines swinging from the high roof. Her eyes instantly recognized they formed some kind of cocoon, the reflection of mouse ears all too easily readable. She could hear the muffling grunts of the mouse, his hands trying to break open the barrier he was encased in. Beside his was a larger cocoon, Pete frantically trying to pry open his cell.

Aseles glowered to Maleficent, her laugh continuing to ring off from the walls, “Release them, or I will make you!”

“I’m afraid not; they’re here for the celebration, the reunion we’ve all been waiting for…” Maleficent grinned, the edge of her lips twitching. She stood at the base of the throne, the end of her staff stabbing into the red, dark sea.

“The only reunion you’re going to get is meeting the same fate to the keyblade like last time!” Aseles shouted, anger spewing at the edges of her mouth.

“Oh, but you see, Aseles-“ the witch’s palms ignited a fiery inferno, her green eyes targeting right through her- “There is no one here to save you this time.”

The brunette refused to be shrunk in place, staying boldly in her stance, “My friends are here, and we’ll take you down!”

“So be it!” Maleficent sprung her orb forward, a bolt of lightning clashing on command. Aseles and her team immediately split, weapons ready in hand.

“Destroy the staff!” Aseles charged, curving her keyblade to the outside of her arm, “Thunder!” The yellow daggers scathed the air like ragged scissors, blocked and tossed aside by Maleficent’s rod.

Raine came next, a heavy frost spewing and quickly ascending in rapid speed to the witch’s feet. Maleficent shouted out a circle of hellish flames, melting the ice instantly on contact. Dimitri took the chance to camouflage himself in the heated smog, and swung downward in a piercing strike. Maleficent clanged her orb against the head of his weapon, but Dimitri leapt back and dodged to avoid the firing orbs.

“Heavy Mist!” Raine skidded across, standing in front of Dimitri. A barrier of interlocking diamonds formed, protecting Dimitri for the misfires headed his way. The air exploded in smoke, Aseles having to block her face with an arm. She coughed, but sighed in relief to see her teammates were uninjured.

“We’re only getting started!” Maleficent cheered out, her orbed staff lifting and crackling the entire ceiling. Various bolts began to rain downward, some collectively adding to single points across the battlefield. Aseles zipped across, Raine and Dimitri following on either side of her.

“Hit the orb!” Aseles spun full circle, and batted her keyblade full force, “Thunder!!” Her coated keyblade sprang and spun like a mad top, making direct contact with Maleficent’s staff. Maleficent held against it, her menacing laugh echoing and cutting into Aseles’ sense of security; her stomach dropped to see the keyblade deflected, headed straight for Raine.

“Watch out!” Dimitri cut through first, his body ramming and slamming the blue-haired companion against the ground. Aseles’ keyblade barely missed striking Dimitri, spinning across and stabbing into the ground nearby. Maleficent smiled victoriously, her orbed staff now aiming at the thrown fighters.

“You shall pay!”

“No!” Aseles sprinted full run, her hand swinging out forcefully as she came into view of the spiraling bolts, standing defiantly in front of her friends.

“Aseles, no!” Raine whirled her head away, the strong force kept at bay by Aseles’ reappearing keyblade. Her eyes shut tightly closed, teeth clenching to hold onto the ricocheting turbulence of Maleficent’s force. The edges of her frame illuminated almost instantly, her silver-coated irises glaring up to the vengeful Maleficent.

“Argh!” Aseles rammed her entire form forward, the bolt deflected and rebounded. Maleficent’s eyes widened, a large explosion swallowing the entire battleground. Aseles spun her keyblade rapidly in front of her, hair and eyes ignited in a golden, protective gleam. The smoke was fanned out of their way, Dimitri and Raine standing a few feet behind Aseles, trying to regain their breathing back. Aseles remained unmoved, jaw clenched and eyes scanning the rising, dark fog. Maleficent’s orbed staff laid on the ground, tattered and destroyed. Alongside it, a few feathers laid sizzled, a steam lump of flesh laid at the sorceress’s feet. Maleficent remained unmoved, her head bowed down, and remaining oddly still.

“I don’t like this…” Raine whispered from behind.

“Th-That’s not- Maleficent!” A voice from above choked, Aseles whirling her head to catch the coughing Pete. His pod had been crackled open just enough for his head to stick out.

“Is that’s not her, then who is-“ before Aseles could ask, her attention was brought back to the giggling enchantress. Her frame froze, watching as the pair of possessed eyes lifted to glare at her.

“You never learn, do you, you little brat?” A monstrous, consuming gale erupted around Maleficent’s body, and she screamed in sharp and rampant agony. Her clawed fingers dug into her chest, Aseles’ parted mouth twitching at the grotesque body crawling out of her chest. A wild mane launched and bloomed from the head, the rest of the body coated in a dark cloak. Maleficent’s useless body dropped back, her whimpering groans holding her captive to make any other move. The smaller body in comparison stared straight to a stricken Aseles, her tongue having lodged into her throat, enabling her to speak or make the slightest sound.

“You thought you got rid of me? How _stupid_ of you to think that!” The gale around her slammed outward, Aseles seething of the dark component seeping along her skin. Her eyes shot back to see Dimitri and Raine were launched several yards away, a barrier dividing the group. Aseles was trying not to panic, but when she turned to face Ihara, she was standing right in front of her.

“Boo.” Aseles was kicked across the air, her Golden State flaming to combat against the new foe.

She skidded onto her feet, keyblade gripped tightly and eyes lingering to the unconscious and abandoned Maleficent near the throne, then back to Ihara. She opened her mouth to say something, but all she could muster was a shaky and incoherent word.

“H-How?!” Aseles swallowed, a grim ash imprisoning her senses into an obscure vortex.

Ihara was noncompliant, and instead sneered, “Time to end this.” With spurting leaps, Aseles was able to catch Ihara’s full view only when she was finally in front of her. Aseles swung, but Ihara suddenly disappeared.

“Shit-!” Aseles spun fully around, her keyblade sparking dangerously close to her face, Ihara’s dark and familiar disks repeatedly tossed like yoyos. A cackle rose from her wild disposition, and again Aseles was sent reeling back, the stone floor threatening to follow her from how powerful her boots skidded. Aseles exhaled heavily, but stayed firm again when Ihara charged. She met her in the middle of the secluded arena, keyblade and disks clashing and rampaging to gain the upper hand. Blurs of dark hair and gleaming eyes threatened to overdo her, but Aseles wasn’t going to have none of it.

“You think you’re so tough!?” Ihara kicked Aseles’ keyblade upwards, making the brunette’s eyes widen. “Think _again_!” Ihara’s hand expanded out and a brutal whirlwind encased Aseles downward. She screamed, and cried out when her back hit the stone floor below. Her hair splayed along her head, her limbs trembling to pick her back up. She grunted and coughed, the inside of her mouth tasting metallic and iron. Her Golden State retreated, leaving her bare to the landing Ihara yards away.

“Aseles, get up!” Raine urged, tears forming at the edges of her eyes.

“Aseles!” Dimitri slammed his keyblade repeatedly against the barrier, the two unable to make a dent.

Ihara giggled mirthfully, her eyes scanning down the path to where Aseles laid, “Isn’t this unfortunate? What’s _wrong_ , Aseles? Too weak without your precious, savior here? What a shame….shame shame shame!”

Aseles grunted weakly, attempting to sit up, “I c-can….take care of my-“ Her words drowned in a gurgle, her whimper shooting out when her back made contact to the hard ground again. She reached to adjust her locked jaw back in place, groaning painfully from the kick Ihara had delivered to her. Her body shook terribly, her arms trying to push her up on her knees.

“Aseles!” Dimitri called from behind her. Aseles inhaled roughly, seeing his eyes pleading to her, face scrutinized in anger. “Now is the time!”

“Is that so?” Ihara taunted, puckering her lips as she began to stride over casually. “I don’t think Ria would like it if she saw me how much I was kicking you around.”

“R-…Ria?” Aseles coughed out, able to finally push herself to her knees. “Who…ngh…”

“How pathetic. You still don’t remember _her_ ,” Ihara scoffed with a large grin curving up her cheeks. “Then I’ll have the pleasure of disposing you without even knowing.”

“Aseles, it’s time!” Dimitri ordered from behind.

“I-I’m not, UGH!” Aseles gasped out painfully, feeling Ihara’s hand clutching at her throat. Her back pressed against the barrier, Raine and Dimitri desperately trying to open it from behind her back.

“Dimitri!” Raine cried out with hot tears spilling, her keyblade frantically lashing at the blockade.

“Aseles, no!” Dimitri grunted heavily, “Stop! STOP!” Ihara lifted her free hand, the edge of her knuckles pointing a dark, arrowhead coated with lavender thorns, aimed straight to Aseles’ forehead. She laughed onto Aseles’ face, watching the dim, cool eyes of the wielder focusing straight at the weapon in her hand, fearful and stunned.

“Oh, what a _pity_. Poor Aseles, thought she could do things her way. If it makes you feel any better…” Ihara leaned, Aseles’ eyes broadening in frantic terror. “I’ll be finishing that stupid Somebody of mine _next_.”

_“Why did you come rescue me?”_

Her hand lifted back, Aseles eyes staring to the daggered tip taking aim. The air was cold….

_“I made a promise.”_

But something hot swirled inside her. It blew off the top of whatever seal she had, the feeling overwhelming burning her limbs and muscles.

_“You remembered what was right, that’s all that matters. You fought off the darkness that was inside you. You fought of Ihara.”_

“Aseles!”

_“Always remember that I’m always watching you.”_

“Let go, Aseles!”

_“Know that you don’t have to save me. Save yourself.”_

Ihara’s arm locked in place, and drove downward.

“ASELES!”

_“Aseles, save yourself.”_

“DO IT NOW!”

_“Aseles, you are your own hero.”_

Ihara’s arm rattled in place, her wrist burning and steaming from Aseles’ touch. Her dark eyes lingered into Aseles’, whose outline was now embossed in chaotic and dark waves. Raine and Dimitri immediately backed up, the dark sprouts pulsing out in sparks. Ihara was tossed back, her feet scrambling to find her footing on the carpet. She whirled around to stare at Aseles, whose eyes held a brooding color of dark gray. Her hand lashed out her keyblade, body quaking with vigor. Her chest bounced with her heavy heaves, her injuries from before still prominent and not healing.  

“You lay…one finger on her…” Aseles growled out lowly, the head of her keyblade crackling with Darkness. “I will rip your head from your shoulders!”

Ihara barked out a high and triumphant laugh, “That’s more like it! Want her, prove it to me!” Aseles lunged without a thought, keyblade and disks now invisible to the naked eye, leaving only debris of dark clouds and evidence of their heated battle. Aseles ducked and swerved agilely, keyblade ducking back and forth to rebound the disks slamming repeatedly at her defenses. Dark volts of ebony crashed and dug into the carpet and walls, Aseles unwilling to recoil or drop her offensive manners. She swung continuously and aggressively, jetting flashes exploding across the field, and not once did any of them break away.

“FIRA!” Aseles slammed her keyblade full frontal and center, pinning both of Ihara’s disks over her face. The blast of dark fire rang hot and true, engulfing the two in a tornado. Ihara’s scream echoed in the hall, but Aseles did not give her time to recover. She slammed Ihara across the air, spinning vertically forward and ramming her keyblade into Ihara’s side. It sent her banging against the force field she had conjured, sending all falling shards into ash. Her body lifted with the help of gripping onto the nearby column, an eye cracked open to stare at the advancing Aseles.

“It’s over!” Aseles shouted. “Tell me where she is! What did you do to her?!”

“My work is done,” Ihara smirked, and suddenly began to drop down into a made portal. She was getting away!

“No!!” Aseles rammed her keyblade forward, but missed the opened entry. It closed beneath her, leaving her in a state of anger and irritation, “No, no no no no! Damn it!” Her dark flames encasing her body rolled and blasted out randomly, thrashing and hitting against the nearby columns she was standing next to. Her keyblade repeatedly smashed against the wall and ground, trying to relieve the burning aroma of the Darkness that had taken possession of her.

“Aseles, stop!” Dimitri bellowed, his racing footsteps headed to her. She ignored his call, continuing to thrash her way into the wall, wanting to merge herself into the stone. She felt the haul of her shoulder, her wrist gripped to drop the dark keyblade in her grasp. It clattered to the ground, her face detained tightly in Dimitri’s palms. Her eyes shifted, but Dimitri leaned down, gaining her attention.

“Take a deep breath- breathe in, breathe out- that’s it.”

“She- she got away!” Aseles sorely breathed out, her chest fired up like gasoline on coal.

“It’s okay- listen to me, you’re here. Relax, relax Aseles.” She buried herself forward, feeling her hands involuntarily grip the front of Dimitri’s shirt. She pushed herself into him, but sighed gratefully when she felt his arm snake around her, pulling her closely.

“It hurts- everything hurts…” Aseles staggered on her feet, groaning with the edges of her eyes tearing.

“Relax, just relax. You won this fight- she left, she’s gone.”

“Why doesn’t it feel like I won…” Aseles strained out, her eyes rolling lazily underneath her closed lids. She felt the Darkness begin to abruptly diminish, feeling it all recollect to her tattooed shoulder. She felt Dimitri soothing it unconsciously, his cool hand sliding up and down her back.

Finally the familiar atmosphere of the Throne Room recollected around her, her eyes picking up the faint flickers of darkness crinkling about the chamber. The thorns and vines began to sand away, bringing the natural light back into the room. The cocoons that harbored both Mickey and Pete gave way, the two dropping down and landing onto the rugged carpet below. Raine hurried over, her eyes inspecting Aseles worriedly, “Are you okay? Aseles, I got so scared! Does anything hurt??”

“No, I’m…fine…” When Dimitri had stepped away, Aseles looked to the fallen form of Maleficent, her body leaning over the small steps that led up to the red, high chair. Aseles stumbled forward, but Dimitri didn’t bother to ask or argue with her. The three approached the sorceress, who was gasping out, her lifeless crow cradled in front of her damaged and unrepairable chest. Her body was beginning to steam off, nothing but specks of ash in place. Aseles gestured Dimitri to kneel her down, Maleficent’s flickering eyes looking up to the brunette. Aseles reached hesitantly, but resettled Maleficent’s neck better, her eyes facing the ceiling.

“Maleficent..” She fixed the soft cape to fill up the gap between her neck and the stairs.

“How odd…this turned out to be,” Maleficent sighed out heavily, her throat lurching from her deep swallow. “A keybearer, coming to my rescue. But alas…it is a moment too late.”

“I’m….I’m so sorry,” Aseles gritted her teeth, her hands gripping her own dress tightly.

“You’re…apologizing to me? When I in the past, have done the same to you?” the witch coughed, her lungs gasping hoarsely. Her eyes were struggling to stay open.

“I…hated Ihara, more than I hated you,” Aseles breathed out.

“Frankly, my dear, I feel….offended by that,” Maleficent exhaled sharply, an apologetic smile creeping on her lips.

“I know how it feels, I know how it felt to have her inside of me, a-and…” Aseles swallowed, her head shaking. “I’m so sorry she did that to you too.”

“Hush, child. Let me…whisper out my final wish.” Maleficent’s trembling hands reached up, coated in the black residue pouring out of her heart. Aseles’ eyes shot open to see Maleficent wrap her fingers into hers, soft and silk to the touch. Her faithful crow was tugged with her opposite hand, close to where Ihara had embedded her own nails inside of. Maleficent’s eyes laid open, drawing Aseles in.

“Defeat them. Defeat Master Xehanort.” She inhaled painfully, her eyes shutting closed, “Make them pay for what they did to me. Make them pay…for what they did to you.”

“I…I don’t understand,” Aseles’ eyes constricted. “Xehanort? _The_ Master Xehanort? H-How did-“

“Darkness now lingers in your heart. I see it….I feel it. Whatever they put in you, whatever idea…it has manifested to something great.” She shivered at that statement, feeling her throat chill and clog with ice. “Use it…to your advantage…Use the Darkness, don’t be afraid to because in the end….it might be the only thing that can save you…” Maleficent’s green hand paled, and it turned limp in Aseles’ grasp. She froze that moment, eyes flickering rapidly to see the witch’s body rose in a flock of dark shards, leaving her cloak where she once laid. It was until the tips of her horns evaporated and flew into the air that she was truly gone. The room grew quiet, Aseles withdrawing her hand to inspect it; it was clean, it too being the last living thing she had touched.

“Oh…golly.” Aseles looked over to see Mickey approaching, a deep frown etched onto his face, “Her greed for Darkness was too much; she gave up too much for it.”

“Here..” Dimitri leaned down, and picked up Aseles from her waist. Raine was already taking out a potion, and handed it to Aseles to take. She did so, coughing and wiping the red from her mouth. She looked down to see the blood and cuts washing away, Aseles able to stand on her own.

“Thanks…” Aseles nodded to Raine, gently pushing off Dimitri’s arm from her. Her head was still wiring, connecting the links in her mind; Master Xehanort…Master Xehanort was here. In Terra’s body…gosh this was all such a mess.

It was true: Master Xehanort was here, and commanding the Substitutions. He was the one ordering Chad and Ihara around. He took Hayner away. He was the one who unleashed Vanitas from Sora. It was him. It was all him all along.

“Pete, you alright?” Mickey looked up to his former enemy. Pete, the wide and rumbustious character that he was, would’ve made a fuss, a run maybe once he realized that his leader had perished. But…he didn’t. Instead, he held this apologetic and calm stature, his shoulders slumping as he looked down to the mouse.

“Mickey- I mean, Your Majesty-“

“It’s okay,  Pete,” Mickey reassured, smiling, “You did a brave thing, trying to warn the castle, and for that, I’m grateful.” Pete exhaled out in absolute relief, the attention now turned to Aseles, Dimitri and Raine. “I…I cannot thank you enough. Aseles….”

“You don’t have to say anything, it’s okay,” she rubbed her face gently, “I’d rather not. I don’t feel so well.”

“Please rest. Once we have things straightened out, you’re welcome a room. Aseles?”

Her eyes dropped back down, looking to the abandoned cloak, “Master Xehanort…”

Mickey shared the firm grim on her face, the two standing side by side, “Yes…I’m..sure you know who that is?”

“Maybe more…than I should’ve known, to be honest,” Aseles frowned.

The castle was returned to some of its former glory, recovering slowly from the hard losses of the Substitution infiltration. The Cornerstone held itself firm and pure despite all the madness that was unleashed, glowing radiantly and safely in its closed compartment. Disney Town was returned to its former inhabitants and folk, the doors of the castle left wide open for any injured residents to receive help from Minnie, Merlin and Mickey.

As the trio worked around to aid the castle’s volunteers, Aseles discovered that Pete’s son was one of the two boys locked in the brig. They hugged tightly to one another, but the mystery of the second boy was left little to the imagination when she turned and saw Goofy and Donald arriving through the Hanger doors in the garden below.

“Dad!”

“Max!” Goofy cheered, embracing his son closely. The three reunited with Aseles on the top balcony, Goofy unable to wipe away the tears as he pulled Aseles to him. She hugged him back, shutting her eyes tightly.

“Thank you for saving my boy,” Goofy buried himself into her, aided by Donald.

“Don’t you scare us like that!” Donald wagged his finger to her.

Aseles crooked a smile, shrugging, “Force of habit…Daisy’s waiting for you-” She reached for her arm, rubbing it tenderly, “Still sore.” On cue, Dimitri led her to a spare room Mickey had lent them, the mouse hurrying off to aid a section of the castle. Dimitri closed the door, the two now alone in the brightly-lit room from the large windows. Aseles looked up and out of them, catching the blue sky cloudless, but serene. She winced when she felt Dimitri wrap the given gauze around her arm, giving it a gentle knot below her elbow.

Dimitri took a seat beside her, his chest heaving out, “Feeling better?”

Aseles sighed, cupping her right arm, “Yeah….I guess.”

Dimitri slanted his mouth downwards, “That was….her, huh?” Aseles nodded, looking to see him run his fingers through his dark locks, “She was…out of her mind.”

“It’s not new…unfortunately,” she hugged herself tighter. “She mentioned her name….Ria.”

“Ria?” Dimitri spoke out, careful to pronounce it correctly. “Do you know her?”

“No but….I will soon,” she inhaled deeply, letting her eyes lazily flicker open and closed. “I just feel….tired right now. I…I thought I was going to go up in flames. I don’t think I can…let that happen again.”

“Right…” Dimitri nodded, biting the side of his mouth briefly, “Aseles-“

“Thank you, for teaching me though,” she laid her hand on top of his, gazing up to him, “If you hadn’t taught me, I probably wouldn’t be here right now.”

Dimitri looked down to her, searching her, watching her intently before a small smirk played on his lips, “Who else is going to watch your back, Boots?” The two sat in silence, gazing forward to the large wall. Aseles’ trailed her fingers across her wrist, her back expanding out from her deep breaths. Dimitri in turn relinquished and surrendered himself to their peaceful quietness.

“We’ll find them, right?” Aseles let out calmly, resisting any sort of strain to settle in her mind. She let Dimitri’s tranquility play along her skin, shivering when she felt him adjust briefly in his place.

“Yes, we will,” Dimitri hummed out.

“Will you be there, when we do?” she looked over, and felt the immediate pull of his attractive eyes.

Dimitri gazed to her, “If I say yes?”

Aseles moved herself over slightly, hooking her arm around his, “You would be a _really_ good friend if you did.”

Dimitri chuckled at this, peering down to her, “You mean upgrade our friendship?”

Aseles giggled gently, shrugging, “Yeah, most likely.”

“Hmm..” he reached to tap his chin, “I…don’t knoooow…I’ll think about it.”

“Fine, I’ll wait for an answer,” she blushed when she saw him smirk.

“Maybe I’ll give you the answer sooner than you think…” The light of the window breached along the carpet at their feet, only the tips of their boots lit from the morning sky. In the soft, yellow-hued shadow of the  guest bedroom, the two individuals rested against one another, shoulder to shoulder with arms locked in a tight embrace. It was sure (Aseles was _sure_ ) that the tallest one leaned, and planted a soft kiss on the top of the shorter one’s forehead. Simple, and clean it was, even in the wake of chaotic plans and hidden intentions neither of them were aware of.

Aseles knew this was real.

It had to be real…

 

RIKU’S POV:

 

“Sora, don’t! You gotta wake up! Sora!”

 

 

This couldn’t be happening.

 

“....Wait!”

 

But this was.

 

 

 

“Sora, wake up!! Wake up!”

 

How did this happen? How did any of this happen?

 

“.....Have...to stay....”

 

 

He had to save him. He was the only one who could save him.

 

 

 

 

“Sora, you have to wake up!”

 

Please, no. Not this. Not like this.

 

“.....”

 

Damn it, wake up you lazy bum.       

 

“Sora, don’t chase the dreams. They’ll lead you nowhere, just to an abyss you’ll never be able to wake up from.”

 

 

His eyes widened.

 

This. Was. Real.

 

 

 

_“...Sora can never wake up.”_


	23. Closer

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Closer to my doom is more like it.
> 
> HOW EXCITINGOKJSADAKSJFDWEFNSNLFDF. Things are kind of slow in this chapter, but the last three are going to pick things up and slam it against the wall because I can no longer function with my feelings at this point. Enjoy kids, because happy times are over.
> 
> Sincerely,  
> Keys

FFW:

_“Wake up. W-w-wake up-”_

_“..Huh?”_

_“Wa-Wake u-u-u-up-p-p-p.”_

_Blinking eyes, a smiling, blooming face. Blond locks swirling to the top of his head. His eyes, blue as the clean soul, his hands resting on his knees. His head tilted, chuckling with eyes closed, the vision playing along blurs and sharpness._

_“V-...Ventus?”_

_“Over here.”_

_Turning, seeing a woman with blue hair, waving, signaling. Stumbling at first, then straightening, now looking down at Ventus, and a little bit higher than the woman’s eyelevel._

_“You sleep too much, Terra,” the woman giggled, shaking her head._

_“Aqua?” lips questioned._

_“Hey, you alright, Terra?” Ventus came forward, blinking worriedly._

_“I-I’m...I’m, what?” questioning, brooding on the thought. Running fingers through thick locks, upright locks._

_“Terra.”_

_Swiftly turning, hearing that deep voice. The clarity of an old man, slouching forward with his arms and hands resting behind his back and his black cloak jumping along his sides. The man shook his head slightly, ridiculing with a smirk._

_The barren wasteland stretched out, the dry atmosphere cutting and drying skin and eyes._

_“Terra...toying with me? You think you still have a chance to escape?”_

_A dark shield broke from behind, body slamming and breaking into it. On the other side, a white void, and a deafened scream._

_YOU are my vessel._

_You ARE my vessel._

_You are MY vessel._

_She gasped, head clutched in her digging palms. She winced and yelled, trying to keep the dream in place before it shattered. No, something was slamming against the sky, breaking in the hard crystal glass encasing her in._

_“A-Aseles, listen to- memememememememe!”_

_She looked down to the floor she kneeled painfully on, eyes squinting down to stare at the man sleeping below her. Her fists slammed against the floor, but every time they did, static and noise bombarded her, weakening her focus._

_Terra’s hands pressed against the ceiling of his coffin, mouthing something to her in desperate_

_strain. His hologram body was breaking apart, trouble and chaos to stay put together._

_“Ter-ra!” she cried out, for the fifth time._

_The fifteenth time._

_The twenty-first time._

_The thirty-sixth time._

_The same dream over and over and over again. He was trying to warn her, he was trying to get back into her head._

_But he couldn’t. A force was stopping him. A force was waking her up._

_“B-Be careful, Aseles! D-Do-Do-Do not f-f-f-f-fall in-in-into the Dark-neeeeessssszzzzzzz!”_

_She stood up, already knowing what would happen once her keyblade hit the floor. She tried to though, and she lifted it up, and slammed down-_

Her eyes pried open, unwillingly and painfully. Her chest heaved of the rough breathing she collected during her slumber. She looked to the clock, knowing it was going to be impossible to sleep for another hour.

“Another dream about him...”

But she tried anyway...

 

The morning was absent of any mist, warm and welcoming. The rays penetrated to kiss the top of the tallest buildings in the Market Place, among the gardens in the Central Square and among the trickling skin of the vast water in the exposed Fountain Courts. The body of sea surrounding the lovely world sparkled and gleamed, like that of a million stars bathing in it, blurring the definition between fact and fiction.

She prepared a bowl of cereal for herself, but jumped when she felt a hand ruffle her head. She darted her eyes around to see it was Leon. She had forgotten if he had been here the whole time, or if he just arrived. Either way, he looked to her, concerned.

“Is something on your mind?” he asked.

“Just...had a hard time sleeping, that’s all,” Aseles answered. She frowned, but the expression cleared when she looked to see Leon was studying her intently.

“Hmmm, that trip to Disney Castle must have done something to you.”

“Yeah...seeing Ihara just.....” she placed her hands in between her thighs, glancing rapidly to the side. “It bothered me.” She refused to tell Leon she had been learning Dark magic from Dimitri, or that she even tapped into it; she wasn’t sure how he would react to it, but it was something she wanted to keep under wraps. The judgements of her friends was something that still hung over her, despite knowing that they accepted Riku as a Dark Wielder. The problem was that he knew how to control it, and she didn’t. She went astray from it and never wanted to touch it ever again, not from those weeks ago. It hurt, it felt chaotic and raw; it was controlling her, she felt it, and that’s what scared her the most. She and Dimitri had to persuade Raine to not say a thing, and she agreed; she knew it was a power that saved all of them, and didn’t like the idea of putting Aseles in a hot spot with Leon or the Committee. Aseles was glad it was left at that.

“What’s happening with the captured Substitutes from the castle?” she changed the subject.

Leon sighed, lifting his hand up and resting the side of his face against his straightened fingers, “They’re not saying much. The best thing we can do is to keep trying, and see if they say anything on Xehanort’s whereabouts. Axel scouted the other worlds via portal, but he came up empty of finding any activity. I know that’s something you would’ve wanted to do, but I didn’t want to risk your safety again.”

Truthfully, neither did she, “I understand. I’m also concerned about Dimitri and Raine’s safety.”

“Fair enough,” Leon sighed, his hand reaching up to massage his right temple. “Then our best course is to hang tight, and actually wait for any word from Sora and Riku.”

Aseles nodded, “Yeah, I get it.” She stood up, washing her bowl and spoon quickly, “Where are Dimitri and Raine? I saw their doors open.”

“They should either be in the Market Place, but Dimitri did mention he would be in the Fountain Courts. Cid also wanted some parts from Traverse Town, but I wanted to ask you if you could get those for me; the world is already protected and synced with Merlin’s magic,” Leon replied.

“Yeah, sure thing.”

“But, I need to ask...”

“Yeah?”

He leaned back in his chair, leg crossing over his knee, “Is there.....something going on?”

“What...do you mean?” Aseles blinked, stopping on the other side of the table.

Leon gave her a flat look, making her clear her throat nervously, “Do I need to clarify?”

Aseles blushed, shaking her head, “Nothing is happening.” Leon did not budge. “Dimitri is just....really protective.”

“Protective? Is that all?” Leon tilted his head at this, chuckling briefly.

Aseles huffed out, biting back her groan, “If there were something, I....I don’t know how to go through with it anyways.” She leaned against the nearest chair, pouting briefly, “Me and the.....dating thing was never a thing.”

“I think he’s a good guy,” Leon stated casually, making Aseles whirl her blushing face at him. He shrugged, a small grin playing on his face, “But honestly, I don’t think anyone is ever going to be good enough for you.”

“Leon!” Aseles was blushing bright scarlet, having made a new color for a sunset, she was sure.

Her guardian laughed, his head rolling back, “I’m only being honest with you. He defends you quite often.”

She stuffed her hands into the pockets of her dress, eyes shifting away to the door, “I just find it weird, okay?”

“If you want a piece of advice...”

“Sure.”

Leon stood, fixing his jacket, “Follow what your heart wants; don’t wonder with what could’ve been, but what _could_ be.” He walked to stand in front of her, holding the door of the house open, “Don’t keep him waiting too long, no?”

Aseles maneuvered her way through the Borough, the morning now too humid and hot for her liking. She never thought to think about such things, but now that the idea was present, it sure showed up during a time when she _shouldn’t_ be meddling with something like this in such a serious predicament. She should be worried about Xehanort, about Vanitas and Ihara’s appearance. She should be looking for Hayner and training to fight against Chad. She should be discovering who this Ria girl was....

_“Just because you have to save the worlds doesn’t mean you have to grow up so quickly.”_

She sighed, remembering the conversation she had with Axel. It seemed so long ago...and the person they were talking about was no longer someone she...could see that with.

_“He’s a good kid. He can pick whoever he wants to be with. So, what if he picked you?”_

She shook her head, walking through the corridor of the Bailey. Her eyes scanned the vast plain of sparking water, the wind wavering her hair as she continued her stride.

_“I don’t think we would want the same thing from each other._ _Sora has everything he needs.”_

_“What is it that you’re looking for?”_

She remembered her answer, her feet subconsciously taking her through the vined walls and restored pathways she ventured through. Her eyes gazed forward, and they looked onto the redone entrance of the Fountain Courts. Her lips parted at its pretty and ornamented archway, the entire pathway having been expanded and cemented with a solid arc ten feet tall. Ahead, her eyes looked to the figure facing his back to her, sitting on the modified and wider bridge installed. The glittering, lavender waterfalls locked onto his shadowed body, powered with broad shoulders and muscled arms. When she finally arrived to the beginning of the bridge, her eyes looked to see him standing, watching the man look back down to her.

Hair as dark as the void, tussled as if he had just gotten out of bed. His eyes stormed with a curtain of green and brown, harboring a look of restrained anger, but a tranquil settlement that drowned her into them. The way he prided himself in his stance made her wary, but the way he looked to her was anything but harmful; they shushed her in a secure surrender, knocking her to her knees. His dark pants were sewn and patched in different areas from wear and tear, through battles and wars. His knuckles almost like snow, cold and inflamed of deviled rebellion.

It was impossible to think that this was the same Dimitri, the one she was ready to strangle months ago.

_“I’m looking for myself.”_

Dimitri smiled, stepping over to her and gesturing her to sit, “Hey, Boots.” She walked forward, unable to diminish the red crease he had once successfully drawn out.

She had known him for a shorter time, but it felt like she had known him for more than five years. This fighting ignition he had brought her the first time they laid eyes on one another, how glad she was that she never got rid of it. If anyone had helped her look for who she was, Dimitri was by the only one who never made her feel helpless, nor restrained or selfish in her decisions. He never held her down, never silenced nor detain her from the dangers she aimed to overpower. It was there, she realized that not even Sora accepted the Darkness in her like Dimitri had.

It was a part of her, and how Dimitri aided her with it. Yes, she used to feel something for Sora, but not like this. This was...this was something more. It had to be.

“Hey, Dark Boy,” she greeted, standing beside him. Her body stood next to his, and they both sat to face the glistening springs.

“Sleep good?”

“Sort of, yeah,” Aseles replied, tasting the husky, intimate smell around Dimitri’s neck.

He looked to her, “You too?”

“You didn’t sleep well either?”

“No, feeling a bit restless.” He leaned his closest shoulder back, his hand flat against the surface of wood. He tilted his head sideways, looking to Aseles, “I’ll share my dream if you share yours.”

She cleared her throat, able to feel the blood of his throat travel downward, hidden in the ravine of his covered chest, “Hmmm, something having to do with Leon grounding me forever, and taking away my gummi ship.”

Dimitri hummed in response, a yawn escaping, “That’s interesting I suppose. Could see why it would scare you.”

“You don’t sound impressed,” Aseles rested her hand on her hip, nudging him with her elbow, “Fine, share yours.”

He looked ahead again, his still tilted with his locks faintly swaying in the soft breeze, “Home....”

She frowned, nodding, “I see. I’m sorry.”

“I think about....the way everything smelled. The sweets I used to get. And I met this girl there.”

“A girl?” Aseles blinked, resting her hands on top of her lap.

“Yeah. She was annoying, like you,” Dimitri smirked, catching Aseles’ eyes in a trance.

She grumbled, rolling her eyes and pushing his face away, “Very funny, you jerk.”

He chuckled, “But she was a good friend. Like you, too.”

“You need more of those, you know that?” Aseles joked.

Dimitri’s smirk withdrew, dropping to a line, “I don’t make friends, easily...”

“You get along with Raine, and me. How about Leon?”

He shrugged, slouching his shoulders and upper body forward, “You guys are different. You’re different.”

Aseles quirked her mouth, but pulled his shoulder back, making him straighten up, “You’re like us, like anyone else here.”

“Kairi doesn’t think so,” he waved a dismissive hand, his eyes holding a driven remembrance, “She must think you’re insane for hanging around with someone like me.”

“Then, I am insane,” Aseles huffed out, bringing Dimitri’s eyes back to her, “Kairi...I don’t know. She hardly talks to me since we left for Disney Castle. I get that she’s worried, but I don’t like how...” she trailed off, unsure how to finish the sentence.

“I think I’m insane, too,” he cut her off, his eyes radiating. His mouth parted, face leaning close to hers. She said nothing, watching him carefully. The silence increased and stretched, but it was welcoming.

“Why do you think that?” Aseles blinked.

“I am,” he replied darkly, “I can’t stay away from you...” He lifted a hand, sinking several fingers across her bangs. Aseles almost doubled over from the sensation, having to literally hold onto the bridge for support. His face lingered right in front of hers, but he didn’t make a move forward. She was becoming incoherent around him; she had to dismiss the hot tension, knowing she couldn’t linger around this for so long, or she _was_ going to go insane at this rate.

“U-Um, Leon said- Cid wanted us to get him some parts,” she leaned back, the red shade erupting on her face. “I-I don’t want us to be late-“

“You’re on good terms with Cid, right?” Dimitri asked.

“Y-Yeah but-“ His warmth encircled among her, his arm sinking and holding her in, holding the rest of the world at its edge. Slowly his lips caressed hers, relieving the satisfied moan in her chest. The automatic shiver and her eyes closing gave away her submitting thoughts, throwing herself into whatever spell Dimitri was holding her with. That rebellious stature about him; it was captivating, she had to admit, and  was either trying her best to kiss it out of him in hopes of either obtaining it, or being helpless to it.

His fingers circled and trickled along her opposite side, her hands reaching to hold his strong jaw beneath his cool skin. Her eyes somewhat flickered open, but the heat pouring to her face creased when she saw how serene and yielded he was to her. They closed fully again, her arms reaching and wrapping around his neck. His free hand tugged her closer, and she nearly collapsed underneath his fingers when she felt his hand travel along her knee. She was absolutely enslaved to him.

The glass barrier between the two broke, both breaking apart after hearing “You guys here??”

Aseles swallowed, blushing to see her fingers had tugged Dimitri’s hair in several directions. He reached up, soothing out the stray strands into place, a devilish smirk frolicking on his lips. The beating of her heart kicked in high gear, malfunctioning to keep a steady pace.

Cid stood at the end of the pathway, impatiently waving them over with Raine at his side, “Those supplies aren’t going to come in on their own!”

“If you want-“ Dimitri stood after Aseles did, his eyes meeting hers- “we’ll ease your curiosity later.” Aseles led the way, glad that the shadowed walkway of the tunnel was dark enough to let her calm her blush and thoughts.

But she looked over to the gazing Dimitri, “...I’ll think about it.”

 

LEON’S POV:

He sat down on the table, sipping a mug of freshly made coffee. His eyes rested along the surface of the wavering caramel surface as Yuffie sat beside him. They were skimming along the reports Cid had collected from the town’s defense system, and Leon wanted to make the run again to make sure everything was in order.

It had been an hour since Aseles and her group left, but he was sure they arrived by now, embarking on their stop. Yuffie sighed heavily, slumping in her chair with Axel on Leon’s other side. He too was making accountants, astonishing Yuffie.

“You can do math?” she asked, drumming her fingers on the table.

“I may not have a heart, but I have a brain. I’m not stupid,” Axel stared to her.

She scoffed, “That’s up to debate.”

Leon intervened, hoping to stop the children from arguing, “Do the math here for me. I checked it three times, but I need to make sure.”

“You getting old?” Axel joked, receiving a deadpanned stare from Leon.

“Run the numbers.” He stood up, taking his cup of tea with him. He stood behind Cid, inspecting the new codes the tech wiz was programming in, “Looks good so far.”

“In no time, this baby is going to be running twice as fast,” Cid grinned, patting the edge of the computer’s keyboard.

“That’s what he said last week!” Yuffie grinned, laying back in her chair.

Cid shot her a glare, but ignored her to look back to Leon inspecting the numbers, “See anything wrong?”

“No, you’re good to go. Thank you,” Leon smiled, taking a sip. The door of the U.S.S. opened, Leon looked over with Yuffie to see it was Kairi, oddly enough. Her footsteps were silent, her eyes lifted to reveal themselves from her front bangs. She seemed timid to walk in, but swallowed whatever hesitation she harbored. She strode over to Leon.

“Hey, Kairi!” Yuffie waved to her. Kairi smiled gently, waving back. She approached Leon.

“Kairi, what is it?” Leon raised a brow, taking a small sip from his mug.

She rubbed her arm, looking to the ground before lifting back up to Leon, “I need to talk to you.”

“About?” Leon asked, lifting the cup to take another drink.

“It’s about Aseles. Is she here?”

“She left a while ago,” he replied, setting his cup down. Cid immediately grabbed it, and set it on the ground, mumbling to Leon about always having to put the mug near his computer.

“She’s been acting...odd.”

“What do you mean by _odd_?”

“She just acts differently now, ever since Dimitri showed up,” Kairi replied firmly. Leon crossed his arms, a brow arching. In addition, both Yuffie and Axel were looking over, curious of Kairi’s accusation.

“What do you mean?” Leon persisted. What could Kairi be insinuating? They had already spoken about Dimitri this morning, and it wasn’t the only time they did. They were enjoying each other’s company just fine.

“I don’t know- I don’t think Dimitri is a good influence on her.”

Leon hummed, “I don’t think we should jump to conclusions; she’s not here to defend herself. Did you address to her your concern?”

“Yes, but she wouldn’t listen, and she refuses to talk to me since,” Kairi sighed out. “Leon, Dimitri isn’t someone with good intentions.” Yuffie and Axel looked to Leon who was considering Kairi’s words. Kairi continued, her hands cupping each other, “I think....I think Dimitri is influencing her with Darkness.”

Leon’s eyes widened by a fraction of this, arms tense at his sides, “Kairi...this sounds like a private matter.”

“I know it is, but I really want you to talk to her. Please,” Kairi frowned, shaking her head to and fro, “I think it’s dangerous for her; I’m just really worried.”

Leon exhaled, already feeling the heavy burden of this new problem. Aseles toying with Darkness? The last time she did it....Why would Dimitri want to teach her Darkness, unless he was helping her control whatever Darkness she still harbored from her past days. She probably didn’t mention it to her because she felt embarrassed to.

His eyes glanced back to Kairi, “Alright, I’ll talk to her when she comes back. Tell me when their gummi ship lands, Cid.”

“Will do,” Cid typed away.

Leon nodded to Kairi, “Aerith is in the Market Place, correct?”

“Yeah,” Kairi answered, “Did you want me to take you to her?”

“I would appreciate it.” The two parted from the group inside, and exited the main chamber into the hallway leading outside.

“What was that about?” Yuffie blinked, looking to Axel who was trying to focus on running the numbers. “I agree, the kid is weird but...”

“I don’t know,” Axel sighed, pressing his fist against his cheek to holding his head up. Truth be told, he was not liking where this was going.

Aseles, messing with Darkness? That spelled disaster no matter where the word was in the same sentence as her name.

“But I guess...” Axel scribbled down the same answer Leon got the first three times, “She found someone who finally understands her.”

 

ASELES’ POV, TRAVERSE TOWN:

Disembarking the gummi ship, Aseles never felt so much nostalgia in one sitting. She slowed her walk, her eyes traveling across the few residents strolling about the night. The area was lit with a yellow and orange glow, with lanterns illuminating a placid warmth. The stone floor reflected the lights with a mist about the gravel,  swooping lanterns stretched from rooftop to rooftop that all interconnected to the Accessory Shop up ahead. The café to the left held scattered individuals, while the right remained with several people leaning against the walls, conversing with the doors of the Third District opened.

“Jeezes, he needs a lot more parts than usual,” Aseles pulled out the list, stopping by the nearest lamppost. Her eyes scanned down the parchment in her hands.

“It’s funny how you made him write it a second time,” Raine peered over, giggling.

“Hey, I wasn’t going to battle with his horrible handwriting for the next five hours,” Aseles quipped with a shake of her head. “But I think all these parts are sold in the Accessory Shop, so we’ll be fine.”

“This is a small place...” Dimitri scavenged around, hands stuffed in his front pockets. “Traverse Town? That’s what it’s called?”

“Yeah. Brings back a lot of memories, to tell you the truth,” Aseles continued her walk. “Maybe if we get the parts sooner, I can give you guys a tour- though I’m sure Raine already knows her way around.”

“I wouldn’t mind,” the blue-haired teen replied.

They entered the two-story shop, the fireplace doused out. A glass table was set in the center, two couches leaned against the walls toward the corner on the far right, and a refurbished counter being wiped cleaned by a brunette clerk at the far left. His eyes peered over, beaming to their arrival. Aseles walked over while Raine and Dimitri stood on either side of her.

“How can I help you?” the clerk cleaned his hands off with a moist rag, setting it in the front pocket of his folded apron.

“Our friend Cid gave us a list,” Aseles pulled it out, setting it flat against the counter.

The clerk faced it to him, a chuckle escaping, “This is much better writing than before.”

“I figured,” Aseles joked back, “Though he said he wasn’t sure if you had all the parts.”

“All of them but one,” the clerk tapped with a finger to a specific item in the middle. “This one will take a while. Do you mind sticking around for a bit until I can put it together?”

“Yeah, that’s fine,” Aseles nodded. “We’ll be back around half an hour. Is that enough time?”

“Yes,” the clerk nodded, “It’ll be done by then.” He set his sights on rummaging around the counter’s shelves beneath the wood, starting to gather Cid’s parts going down the list.

“Want to take a look around?” Aseles smiled to her comrades. “You get to see some new things, Dimitri.”

“That sounds like fun,” Raine clapped her hands. “Come on, Dimitri.”

“Yeah, yeah, whateve- Hey!” The two girls gripped his hands, and tugged him out the door. They dragged him up the stairs, but he was well-mannered to not argue against them, and followed the duo into the Second District. Several shops were fully operating, Raine joking about her time when she was working at the hat emporium to their right. On the left, the doors of the Motel were left open, several individuals heading in and out with bought goods or ready to work. Dimitri was relatively quiet this time coming around, but Aseles figured his attention was set more on the sights than to bombard the two with remarks or retorts.

Raine leaned against the top brick of the upper platform they stood on, “That building is sure big.”

Aseles leaned over, blinking, “What, the Gizmo Shop?”

“Yeah. I never found out what it’s used for.”

“Hmm, I figured it was the electricity generator of the entire town,” Aseles rested her cheek against her hand. “Been a while since I actually went in...there.”

“Ever thought about living on your own? In a new world?” Raine asked, the two looking over to see Dimitri leaning against the wall, his attention drawn to a few children running past him, playing with what looked like yoyos.

“Once, twice. But, my home isn’t here,” Aseles replied with a soft shrug. “It’s at Radiant Garden, with Leon and the others.”

“But...I thought you were staying with Kairi for a while?” Raine blinked.

Aseles quirked her mouth, “Yeah, I was. With Riku and Sora too but...that didn’t feel like home to me. I guess Kairi told you about that a while ago, huh?”

“Yeah...are you...still not talking to her?”

Aseles shook her head, “No, not at the moment. We got into an argument a few days ago. She thinks that Dimitri is a bad influence still, despite helping us save Disney Castle.”

Raine leaned in slightly, her hands collecting and fiddling to the front of her skirt, “Aseles...what if he is?”

The brunette stilled, then gazed to her, “What? You think he is?”

“I know you...told me to not mention it to anyone but-“

Aseles’ eyes narrowed, then her mouth opened in realization, “....You didn’t.”

“I’m sorry-“

“You told Kairi about what happened.” Aseles groaned, slapping her hands to her face, “Great. She probably told Leon.”

“I-Is that bad?” Raine muttered.

“Bad? More like I’m going to be locked in the house for the next month because I didn’t tell him.” She gripped onto the stone, eyes directing back to Raine, “It’s okay....I’ll face it when we go back-“

“Aseles, I told her because...” Raine bit her lip, fumbling with her words jumbled and mashed in her throat.

Aseles waited, gesturing for her to continue, “Yes?”

“Because-“

“Is there another district?” Raine jumped at the sound of Dimitri’s voice, her shoulders darting upwards to regain her withdrawing nature. Dimitri stared at her, perplexed, “What’s wrong?”

“I-It’s nothing,” Raine shook her head, making Dimitri’s eyes avert to Aseles.

She shook her head gently, “Just something Leon wants to talk to me when we get back. Don’t worry.”

Dimitri appeared unconvinced, but didn’t push it, “Alright.”

“Let’s go to the Third District, and loop ourselves around to end back up in the First. The guy might be almost done by now.” Raine kept herself silent, but followed behind Aseles with Dimitri in the back. They walked down the stairs then around the bend of the alleyway that was crowded with civilians.

Inside the Third District, Aseles took notice that the house that once harbored Leon and the group had been modified to reserve a dinner-pub of sorts. After debating they would get some cookies and drinks from the café, they walked down the stairs, and looked into the main plaza that was stationed across the area. Paper lanterns of diamonds, circles, cubes and pyramids stretched along the lampposts, all connecting to the erect post towering above the fountain at the end. Stalls were formed in lines, making it easier to navigate around the perimeter to avoid the shoppers in the middle. Children ran with paper, mythical creatures attached to sticks, waving them around to animate their long forms and tails. Hot steam rose from a particular stall serving hot drinks while another sold pies and cakes.

Unable to resist the temptation, Aseles hurried over, advising Dimitri and Raine that she would be back. She waited in line, swaying to and fro, counting the needed munny for the sweets. She looked over to see Dimitri and Raine disengaged from a conversation, Dimitri smiling while waving over to her. She looked to Raine next, but saw that the blue-haired companion was struggling to smile, briefly waving once before jerking her hand back behind. Aseles’ smile weakened, her eyes looking forward to the stall, trying to catch the two talking again from the corner of her eye. They didn’t however, making Aseles curious if they had gotten into a banter or argument.

Of course, she didn’t like the idea that Raine told Kairi what had happened, but knowing Raine for the time they have been together, she must’ve done it with good intentions in mind. She was....regretting the lecture from Leon, though.

“Did you want the chocolate, strawberry or vanilla?” Aseles walked back over carefully, balancing the three, paper plates in her hands.

“You can pick first,” Dimitri motioned to Raine. She hesitated, but took the vanilla, eating it carefully.

“Oh no, you’re picking next,” Aseles wavered the plates in front of Dimitri.

“You’re the one who bought them,” he replied.

“I’m the one who offered. Pick,” she pouted, leaving them out the same height to him.

He rolled his eyes, but took the strawberry-flavored slice, “You look like the kind of person who likes chocolate more.” He took the fork out, and began to chew.

Aseles enthusiastically bit a piece from her treat, her taste buds dancing and tingling, “Mmm, you would be right.”

Finishing their cakes, the three made it back to the Accessory Shop, and gathered the parts, cables and equipment for Cid. With the munny he had given to her, Aseles paid the clerk well, and the three began to carry the boxes to the doors of the World Exit.

The sky floated gently in their travel back, the swirling colors upturning and mixing in green, purples and pinks. The cockpit for the most part was silent, until Raine got up to lay down in extra room in the back. She closed the door, signaling to Aseles that she was fine before closing herself in. Aseles frowned, but faced forward to continue driving, leaving Dimitri with her alone.

“I hope she’s okay...Gosh what if I gave her a bad piece of cake?”

She heard Dimitri chuckle from beside, “I highly doubt that. But you...seem distracted.”

Aseles looked over, catching his unnatural and distinct eyes, “A bit, not going to lie.”

“Why is that?” he leaned forward from his chair, elbows on his bent knees. His eyes fluxuating with interest when she looked over again, “Going to make me guess?”

“...If I tell you, you need to promise that you won’t get mad,” Aseles replied resolutely.

“I can’t promise that-“

“ _Dimitri_.”

“Fine...whatever. What is it?”

She inhaled, “Raine told Kairi what happened, and I’m pretty sure she told Leon.”

“After we told her _not_ to??” Dimitri urged, standing up. Aseles swiftly put the wheel in auto-pilot, unbuckling her belt and gripping Dimitri’s arm before he stepped toward the back door.

“I’m sure she did it for good reasons-“

“That girl has done nothing but be on my case,” Dimitri scoffed irritably, tempered and stricken in his place. “For all we know, she’s going to want to kick me out of the world at this rate.”

“Dimitri, she’s not going to,” Aseles gripped his wrist, “I won’t let her.”

Dimitri regarded her, then crossed his arms after she let go of him, “What if she tries to do something to you?”

“Kairi wouldn’t....do that,” Aseles tried to sound firm, but the words jumbled and broke along her tongue. “B-But even if she did, don’t give her a reason to prejudge you further. You deserve to have a place to stay, a place to call home-“

“I don’t have _a_ home, Aseles,” Dimitri exhaled hotly, trying to douse out the flames burning in his stomach. “I’m not welcomed there by anyone....except you.” Aseles’ arms remained immobile at her sides, her eyes scanning Dimitri who didn’t look away from her. “Is that odd? Is that odd to think about? Can....can someone be a home?” Dimitri rolled his head back, breathing out impatiently to the steel ceiling.

Aseles reached forward, clamping her hand with his, “No, that’s not odd at all.” Dimitri’s head tilted back up, looking down to see Aseles warmly look to him, her eyes reflecting the many lights from the gummi ship’s ceiling.

His mouth drooped to imitate a breaking archway, “Aseles....” He squeezed her hand, tugging her closer to him, “...I don’t want to see you get hurt. I don’t want you.....to face the consequences I can bring you.”

“Nothing is going to happen to me,” Aseles urged calmly, “Leon is not going to get mad at me, or _you_.”

“And if he does...?” he inhaled sharply, his digits interlacing and squeezing hers, infinite and solid in his place.

“If he does....” she shuddered at the thought, remembering all too well of the empty and vacant Third District. “We’ll worry about it-“

“Come with me,” Dimitri suddenly countered, his eyes climbing from the base of her neck to her eyes again. His free arm cupped her elbow, bringing himself closer to her. Aseles remained frozen in place, her eyes darting up, searching for whatever joke he was going to lash out with next. Her stomach boiled over to the worried, soft gaze he was inflicting her with. The corner of his eyes crinkled, eyebrows pressed but lifted. His mouth was a firm line, not a grin or a taunt in place. He was...being serious.

“G-Go with you?” Aseles remembered the function to breathe, but the same could not be said with containing herself in a stable, gravitational pull to her feet. She had to grip onto him to support herself, “Dimitri, you need to know that we’re friends, and I’ll always-“

“ _Just_ friends?” Dimitri throat lurched slightly, his lips parting open, “Aseles, despite hating the Light, despite never wanting to touch it, you shine....and I don’t want that to go away.” His fingers curled under her chin, his thumb caressing her jaw and making her cheeks flash a deep red, “Are you sure...we’re just... _friends_?”

Unwillingly her lids began to water, her eyes unable to look away from Dimitri, “...N-No..”

His eyes glistened wonderfully, the edges of his mouth quirking up, “I’ll go...wherever you go. Know that, Aseles. Don’t make me say it twice.” His fingers let her go, the two standing fully straight in front of each other. Aseles had to wipe her face roughly, rejecting the idea of getting emotional anymore. Her shoulders were bare and hot, but it could not compare to the volcanic eruption that had taken over her body. She was at a loss for words; whether this was a want, a need, or a wish, Aseles had to think about this.

She had to think about it calmly and collectively after Leon talked to her. She had to talk to him. She had to make sure nothing was going to happen to Dimitri. She was the one who insisted on him giving her lessons. She...had to make things right.

“I’ll talk to Leon, right when we land,” Aseles motioned herself away, and sat herself back in her seat. It was only until a minute later that Dimitri followed, and he sat in his arranged seat.

She heard him open his mouth, her entire figure shattered of any defense she had left for the rest of the ride.

“If you ever change your mind, tell me.”

 

SORA’S POV:

The doors creaked and cranked open with a single push, a pair of azure eyes watching the night sky above. He stretched his built and slender arms at his sides, pushing his hands behind his head. He smiled his usual smile, his feet crossing to place him in the middle of the First District. The only glows available were from the lampposts of the district, the café, Accessory Shop and set lanterns above the area dimmed in light.

Turns out, Riku became the Keyblade Master, and was granted further study under Yen Sid for the time being. In the meantime, Donald and Goofy headed back to Disney Castle to make sure of its condition. When Sora had woken up from the dream Riku had saved him from, he was told of the events that transpired, his grin reforming at the mention of who saved the castle.

“See, Aseles? I knew you could do it,” Sora beamed. He stretched his arms up, grunting from the entire trance he was locked in, “Jeezes, that was some sleep. I have to stop knocking out so much.”

“Knocking out? That’s an understatement.” Sora’s eyes widened, body swiftly turning to see a black portal breaking open in front of the doors of the Third District. Sora swung his keyblade out readily, facing the ebony mask directed to him. His teeth gritted once he saw the mask was pulled back, revealing the golden eyes and jet-black hair protruding upwards. The grin of the foe glistened, Sora taking an immediate, defensive stance.

“Vanitas!” he pointed his keyblade to his twin.

“I’m not here to fight, kid,” Vanitas waved a hand dismissively.

Sora did not drop his guard, “What are you planning? What are you doing here?”

Vanitas took a few steps to the side, and then stopped, turning to look at Sora with a tilted head, “Looks like you have everything under control, don’t you?”

Sora raised an eyebrow, keeping his keyblade up, “What are you talking about?”

Vanitas smirked darkly, shrugging absentmindedly while pacing around Sora, “You figured out it was the old man, found out people are waiting for you to save them- _good luck_ with _that_ by the way-and ready to protect your friends from this war that will _surely_ happen either way. Thirteen Darknesses against seven Lights-I cannot wait for that honestly.”

Sora’s eyes constricted threateningly, “Vanitas, what are you implying?”

“But, I forgot to mention _one_ little thing,” the dark wielder chortled, “How’s that girl of yours, and _no_ , I didn’t kidnap Kairi if that’s what you’re jumping to. That ship has sailed a long time ago.”

Sora kept up with his glare, “What are you getting to?”

“Hmmm...” Vanitas outstretched his hand, wiggling his fingers out and inspecting them, uninterested of the absent manicure on them, “That bird sure did grow some wings, and made new friends. I wouldn’t be surprised if Aseles already replaced you, that duck and dog.”

Sora’s eyes slightly expanded as his teeth grinded against each other, “I’m not believing anything that you’re telling me.”

“How does it feel being on that end of the rope, huh? No wonder that Riku kid got so jealous-“

“Stop playing games, Vanitas!” Sora stomped a foot down, making Vanitas look to him, “What is it that you’re up to?”

Vanitas chuckled, hand gripping and holding into his cocked hip, “I don’t know, why don’t you ask Aseles yourself? I’m sure she’s willingly to tell you about her adventures, her new boyfriend, her training with Darkness. She’s pretty good at it, but she still sucks, don’t get me wrong-“

Sora swung his keyblade across, Vanitas abruptly swinging his own out, deflecting the attack. The keyblade bounced back, Sora catching it back on the rebound. His blue eyes took a turn, holding a wary storm he was unready to face.

“I don’t believe anything that you’re saying!” Sora shouted out.

Vanitas sighed, flashing out a portal beside himself, “And here I was, looking out for you. Pity.”

“Hey!” Sora dashed over, but the opening gash closed with a puff of smoke.

“Don’t say I didn’t warn you, Sora.”

His keyblade dropped back down at his side, his eyes darting across the ground before hastily making it to the doors, “No. Aseles!” He sprinted to the World Exit, the doors closing with a loud thud behind him.


	24. Deception

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I did say happy times were over.
> 
> Two more chapters to go! Holy sweet sheebus, thanks for the support guys! Enjoy this new chapter, hopefully the next one will be released next week!
> 
> Sincerely,  
> Keys~

ASELES’ POV:

It was no surprise that Leon was already waiting for her in the Hanger. She parked the gummi ship carefully down, and unhatched the opening compartment of the cockpit. The ramp extended with a low hum, Dimitri walking alongside her with Raine the first heading down. Aseles could only hope Raine would feel better; perhaps the ride back got her sick or ill?

“Just be calm,” Dimitri advised Aseles back to her approaching situation. They touched base to the floor, all three carrying a box that contained the parts purchased for Cid. The tall man signaled them with a wave, all three giving him a smile.

“How was the trip?” Leon started.

“It was fine. It took a bit of time but we got what we needed,” Aseles answered steadily. “Do we head back to the control room?”

“Yes. Though, Dimitri can you take Aseles’ box as well? I would like to talk to her.” Dimitri balanced his box in one arm, and collected the other with ease with open and clamping fingers. Aseles watched him give her a reassuring smile, then started walking away.

“Come on, Raine,” he announced. Raine gave a swift glance to Leon and Aseles before tailing Dimitri to the elevator leading upstairs. The metal doors sealed shut, Aseles hearing the loud whirring of the elevator function to life. It reached the top, Aseles able to see Dimitri and Raine walk by and out of sight into Ansem’s Study.

She turned to Leon now, scratching her neck uncertainly, “Am I in trouble?”

“Only slightly,” he advised. “But I’m sure you know what it is I want to address to you.”

Aseles sighed roughly, running a hand fully down on one side of her face, “Maybe…”

Leon’s smile evaporated, “Aseles, when were you going to tell me?”

“I…I didn’t know how to,” she scowled, shoulders dropping in confidence. “I wanted to be stronger-Dimitri had nothing to do with it. I was the one who approached him with the idea.”

“But you’re already strong,” Leon combed her bangs back, making her gaze to him properly, “What was learning Darkness going to change? Doesn’t it, in fact, bring more danger to you?”

“You weren’t there in Twilight Town when they took Hayner,” Aseles persisted, making Leon withdraw his hand, and heed her words. “I used every power in my being to save him, and that still wasn’t enough. I wasn’t strong enough to save him…I want to be. I-I was scared that you would look at me differently if I told you. The last time you found out…”

The memory must have entered both of their minds simultaneously because Leon looked away, his hands fiddling with his hips. She didn’t mean to bring up bad times, but it was a time that surely scarred her, and still carried around. She never wanted to consequence herself in a similar situation like being exiled again.

“Walk with me,” Leon cupped her shoulder, and led her to the lowering elevator. “I understand your concern, and I can see why you would have wanted to keep it a secret from everyone.” He hit the button to lift the metal crate once they were inside, arms crossed on his chest.

“I was afraid that….” The brunette continued, but she was stopped short of further explanation, “I’m not…making a mistake, am I?” They both stopped in the middle of the Computer Room, Leon catching her glance.

He gave her a weak frown, his gloved hand squeezing her shoulder reassuringly, “We all make mistakes, Aseles. I make mistakes too, some I wish I can move past from, but the past  always has a funny way of showing up again. You do what you think is right; only _you_ can plan your fate, no one else.”

Aseles regarded his wise words, and nodded in agreement, “Okay. Thanks, Leon. Really.”

“So…” Leon walked again, Aseles beside him. “Dimitri is teaching you?”

“Uh, y-yeah…” she nodded briskly, feeling the burn crease along her neck. “He knows his stuff, so he taught me some things. But I don’t think I’ll go back to using it any time soon.”

“Is that what you used to fend off the enemy in Disney Castle?”

“Yeah…I wasn’t ready for it to be honest.”

“Hmm, then maybe the best course is to-“

“Leon!” Cid’s panting voice stretched across the air, the brunette duo reaching the top platform of the Postern. They looked down to see Cid was dashing up the stone hill, waving his hand frantically to them. “I-It’s Sora!”

“What?” Leon ran down the path, Aseles sticking right by him. “What about Sora?”

“Is he alright?” Aseles insisted.

“A gummi ship...arriving. It’s Sora!” Tense silence.

“We’ll talk more about this later, Aseles.”

She breathed in shakily, “Right, gotcha.”

The entire group was huddled in the U.S.S., Aseles closing herself within Dimitri and Raine’s presence. Her eyes lingered across the many faces and heads moving about, Leon, Aerith and Cid typing away at the computer to redirect Sora to the Postern up the hill. Bella, Zack, Auron and Cloud were all set in their seats, accompanied by Yuffie, Tifa, Kairi and Axel.

She was afraid, she was actually hesitant of Sora coming back, not because of what he would find out about her (maybe...a little), but of what news he had learned from taking the Mark of Mastery. Surely, something of Xehanort must have been mentioned to him, but her attention was disrupted when she saw Kairi stand up. The two shared a firm but withdrawn glance, her violet eyes looking away to stare at Leon headed toward the door.

“Let’s pick up Sora at the Postern. Aseles, you coming?” Leon looked over.

Aseles crossed her arms, and shook her head, “I’ll wait here.” He gave a brief glance, but said nothing more and left the room with Kairi in tow. The door closed, making Aseles shiver in her place. Her hands reached up to rub her worried expression off, catching the attention of Dimitri and Raine.

“Aseles, you look nervous,” Raine frowned, brushing along her leader’s back.

“I-I’m just nervous of what he might have found out...about Xehanort I mean,” she added quickly when Dimitri stared steadfastly to her. The door opened, Aseles’ eyes shooting up to see it was Jaqueline. The woman smiled to the entire fleet of fighters, and walked over silently with a straight stride. She seated herself beside Aerith who took a spot.

“Surely I haven’t missed anything,” Jaqueline replied, waving to Aseles who gestured the same back.

“No, of course not. Leon and Kairi went to go pick up Sora,” Aerith answered her, the two continuing a discussion Aseles was no longer interested in.

Was Riku with him too? No, they only mentioned Sora was arriving. What had become of him and the test as well? Jeezes, why was she feeling so overwhelmed of Sora’s arrival? She’s seen him before...nothing could’ve changed. However, what if something did change? Something she wasn’t aware of?

“Whatever he found out,” Dimitri stuffed his hands in his pockets, “It better be good. Let’s sit.” She was more than happy to sit in between him and Raine, taking the farthest seats across from Leon in efforts to seclude herself from any attention. She sat on her hands underneath her thighs, her legs jumping back and forth to keep her racing mind occupied with physical, rapid movement. Dimitri reached with a hand to dispel her nervous shake, but it was ineffective when she heard the sound of several footsteps clanking in the hallway to their direction. The door slid open, and arriving was Leon, Kairi, and at last, Sora.

Her dimmed eyes immediately caught his bright ones, the two interlocking in a chained stare. He slowed his pace, but resumed to walk to the long table. His face was a bit angular than the last time she remembered, the bottom of his eyelids faintly concaved with a beige curve, indicating a lack of sleep. His arms swung loosely at his sides, shoes padding sensitively along the metal floor, barely making a sound. His hair had also grown longer, but the front bangs were down and swept across. His spiky hair dropped outwards to the sides, and his entire outfit was changed to that of a jumpsuit yet again; it was in an ebony scheme, outlined in red along the rims of his jacket, pockets and hood. His gloves were upgraded, reaching closer to his elbows and shoes strapped over for secure foot-placement. Kairi walked alongside him, smiling and relieved of his arrival.

“Look who’s back to the party,” Axel chuckled, resting back in his chair with arms behind his head.

“Nice to see you too, Axel,” Sora smiled to him, “Hey guys.” He waved to everyone, and Aseles didn’t fight him with any look when he merely skimmed his eyes right by her. Something was definitely different, with both of them being in the same room. Uncertain what it was, she remained quiet.

“Took you long enough, huh?” Yuffie grinned.

“It wasn’t a year this time,” Sora jokingly replied, seating himself gently next to Leon with Kairi on his other side.

“We’re glad to have you back either way,” Leon smiled warmly, gesturing his hands open to his team before him. “We have a lot to inform you on, but we’re guessing you do too.”

“Um, right,” Sora exhaled out, resting his hands lazily on the table. Aseles looked over to check on Raine and Dimitri, but she nearly asked Dimitri out loud what was wrong; he had taken a steel expression, and was unmoving his gaze from Sora. She wouldn’t say that he was glaring at him, but he was....vigilant, reviewing Sora judiciously. She placed a hand on his lap, making his eyes lower to her. She gave him a reassuring nod, his demeanor lessening and one she recognized. He faced forward again, but her body nearly froze from how Sora was now watching her. She removed her hand from Dimitri, Sora unmoving his stare from her. Kairi noticed, slanting a frown and patting Sora’s shoulder gently.

“Sora?”

“Oh...right, um,” Sora cleared his throat, recollecting his words.

“Go ahead,” Leon nodded.

“The Mark of Mastery was going well, but near the end of it, it was infiltrated by Xehanort while Riku and me were taking it.” Aseles listened carefully, grinding her teeth briefly. “He wants to recreate that war again, the Keyblade War for something called....the χ-blade. We didn’t know much of what it is, except that if he makes it, he can open a door that would throw the worlds into his command. He...” he inhaled for this, the entire group waiting patiently.

“Xehanort...inserted himself into people, into twelve vessels. Something about....seven Lights versus the vessels he had created over the decades. He...He needed one more vessel, and he almost...had me.”

A rock clogged in Aseles’ throat, her swallow wanting to suffocate her from the sudden news; Xehanort tried to make Sora a vessel? Was he trying to do the same thing again of what he did to Terra? No...No it couldn’t be. Not again. Thirteen.....wait-

“Organization XIII,” Axel caught on first, his arms pressing against the table firmly. He growled out, “That sneak!”

“What about the Organization?” Yuffie persisted.

“Thirteen Nobodies,” Cloud closed his eyes, arms crossed on his chest, “Thirteen bodies for vessels.” The air grew chilly, Aseles hugging her arms to herself. That’s why Xemnas created...the Organization? He was….going to use all of them for his personal vendetta.

“Oh goodness,” Aerith was not the only one who caught on, the rest of the Hollow Bastion Committee coming into grips of the news that unfolded. Axel stood up, unable to sit himself still in his chair. He was pacing along the space between the table and computer, his eyes darting across the ground for some solace. Aseles felt herself shudder to see an expressionless toll overpower him. Was he trying to hide his feelings?

“It all makes sense now...” Leon sighed, clutching the bridge of his nose.

“He was the one who introduced Maleficent to Kingdom Hearts,” Sora added next, hands turning into clubs, “It was all _his_ fault.”

_“Make them pay for what they did to me. Make them pay…for what they did to you.”_

Aseles could literally feel her blood turning into ice, pumping up whatever it could to her heart’s chambers so she wouldn’t faint. It was nerve-wrecking to know that this one man had planned it all from the get-go, just to create a war that happened so long ago, to obtain a weapon that would help his own personal gain.

“He still seeks the Thirteen vessel? What happened to Riku?” Leon inquired.

“Riku is fine. He passed the test and was named Master,” Sora smiled, but it faded the same it had arrived, “Xehanort is seeking for his thirteenth vessel. We’re not sure what he’s planning now.”

“Isa and Braig, they’re with him aren’t they?” Axel stopped his pace, staring to Sora.

“Saix and Xigbar?” Sora caught his eyes, and nodded solemnly, “They are.”

“But I thought that Nobodies....disappeared after they’re defeated?” Kairi blinked in surprise.

“When you defeat someone’s Heartless and their Nobody, then the original body is brought back,” Sora exhaled deeply, unsatisfied with the bad news he was delivering. “We defeated his Nobody, and his Heartless, but his vessel bodies would have still been around. We would’ve had to deal with those still -“ All eyes watched Axel leaving, his hand slamming the door closed behind him. The metal walls shook, some flinching of the abrupt sound.

Aseles didn’t waste a moment, quickly standing and running around the table, “Axel!” She fiddled the door open, and gave chase to the Nobody who veered off to the side, away from view. She huffed out unevenly until she caught up with Axel heading down to the Ravine Trail. The air bit her legs and arms, sending rough whips of gale against her eyes and hair. She finally arrived, looking to the view of yellow and orange.

The sunset horizon fused the marble ground with orange swirls and coral patterns, a tall shadow casting over Axel’s hunched figure before the musical-note tombstone against the wall. Aseles swallowed down the boulder in her throat, having it reduced to pebbles. She walked down the steps carefully, afraid to make a sound as if she could scare Axel away. She stood behind him, her eyes riding up his long locks of red flames. He was unmoving, but the last thing she wanted to do was bother him at such a sensitive time as this. 

“Axel,” Aseles breathed out. Axel’s shoulders shivered, a gloved hand clamping to the front of his face. He stifled a noise, making her unsure of what exactly it was. She frowned, and walked over to kneel beside him. She leaned her head over, and clutched his shoulder when she saw he was fighting back something vicious, his mouth quavering with an irate grimace.

“He was going to put himself...inside of us,” Axel breathed out, “Like we agreed to it...like we agreed to everything he said.”

“Axel, you didn’t know-“ she lunged back, staggering to her feet when Axel shot himself up.

He swung his arm out, making her let go of him, “I should’ve! It’s _my_ body, whether I was a Nobody-a real person, or whatever lowlife there is! I should’ve known!” He whirled himself away from her, his front facing the setting sun in the distance. Aseles dug her nails into her palms, waiting unwearyingly for Axel to calm down.

But how could he, when he was unknowingly giving consent without even knowing it to some mad scientist? Axel already had a problem fitting in because he was a Nobody, as Ansem would put it, an empty vessel with no value. She remembered reading his reports, and how angry she became the further she noted his words. All together she stopped reading because the matter of the fact was…she didn’t think  like him. She wasn’t like Ansem, and it was hard to see the similarities they had if they were father and daughter. For a man that was wise, or considered it, he never took into account the emotional aspects of his life, Aseles being one of them. He better suited himself to handle a revenge rather than helping her reclaim the things she had lost; is that why she....disliked him now?

Axel, Roxas and Demyx might have been Nobodies, but they had rights, they had rights like anyone else. Because they were basically clones of someone else made them less valuable? That range of thought was ridiculous.

Axel’s head lowered, “...Damn bastard. That damn...bastard.” He shook again, hands gripping the front of his face, “We should’ve known...when we walked into that lab, that nothing good was going to come out of it.”

“Axel....I’m so sorry,” Aseles responded sympathetically, her eyebrows furrowed upwards, “I’m sorry...for what they did to you. Axel...I’m sorry for what...Xehanort did to _all_ of you...”

“Why?” Axel reeled his head around, teeth gritting. His eyes shined, fueled with hot water, “Why are you apologizing!?”

Aseles approached, and wrapped her arms tightly around his waist, shutting her eyes for the impact of fire ready to rain down on her, “Because Xehanort is never going to.” She buried her face into his shirt, unable to decipher his feelings from the lack of his beating heart, “You deserve....an apology. You are just like us; we’re all the same, and nobody can ever change that. You will always be...my Somebody.” The moments ticked by, but Aseles didn’t let go, keeping her body against Axel’s. Gradually, warily, Axel’s arms slid over, and they hugged around Aseles’ shoulders. She rose her head, feeling his forehead sink into her hair, a steady exhale releasing from his pent chest. She nodded at his silence, not letting go of his embrace to her.

“Thank you, Aseles,” he let out weakly.

“I’ll always be here for you, Axel. The same way you’ve always been there for me...”

 

STAN’S POV:

“Hmm, she said they would be done by now…” he slumped his back across the brick ledge, his leg swinging over the right side where the sea of water glistened below the Bailey. He was resting near the entrance, looking over every now and then to see if his mother would exit anytime soon. She said she was going to be in the meeting, but it’s been about thirty minutes waiting.

“Ugh, this is so boring,” Stan swung his left arm down toward the ground in exasperation. However, he had done it full swing, and felt his balance teeter all the way to the left. He flailed, but rolled off of his perch, hitting the ground with a slap.

“….Ow…” he groaned, seating himself against the brick wall. He rubbed his side, muttering silently of his silly fail. He heard footsteps coming from the Bailey, signaling him it was time for him to get up. He rolled his body over to his front, gripping onto the ledge of the Bailey’s entrance to help him up. However, he ducked back hastily and pried his hands off the base of the archway as if it were boiling hot. He peeked over the edge sneakily, his hands gripping the ground and seeing two bodies enter the corridor. Stan narrowed his eyes. It was...a crying Raine and an upset Dimitri.

Dimitri pushed Raine into the pathway, and nearly pinned her to the wall with his arm hooked underneath her chin. Stan should’ve indicated he was present, but why was he suddenly afraid to? He placed himself on all fours, looking to the two arguing.

“I-I didn’t tell her anything!” Raine pleaded quietly, the edges of her eyes filled with tears, her nails sinking into his arm. “Dimitri, I-I promise!”

“This is the only and last time you screw up, understand?” Dimitri snarled out, his hand unlatching from her upper arm. It then pointed directly to Raine’s face, “One more move, and we might as well give up the fiasco. Do you want your mother and sister back?”

“Y-Yes, more than anything,” Raine’s cheeks trickled with tears, her hands smashing into her eyes. “B-But Aseles is our friend-“

“We’re here on a mission, and you better be damned reminded to finish it. You fuck this up, Raine, and I will make sure you’ll never see them again.”

“Dimitri, you can’t say that to me-“

“And why the hell not?”

“She’s changed you too!” Raine fought back, her foot stomping down to stand her ground. “Don’t you deny it to me!”

“I’m not denying it,” Dimitri fumed, his face darting to the side. Stan quickly withdrew his head away, plastered against the wall fully. He was petrified to breathe, to make a noise to get himself noticed. Why did it sound like….they were both bad guys? They were…lying to Aseles! They were lying to her! He didn’t know on what grounds or in what way, but he had to tell her.

“We need to move quickly. We need to initiate the plan tonight,” Dimitri finished.

“To-night?” Raine stuttered, “That’s impossible. She w-won’t go.”

“It’s our only chance, and it doesn’t help us that naïve, keyblade wielder is already here.”

Raine stumbled with her words, “How will we do it?”

“Kairi will listen to you, and easily fall for your innocent attitude. Express your concern for Aseles’ well-being, and I have no doubts she’ll drag her stupid boyfriend with her. We’ll be in the Fountain Courts, and I’ll deal with the rest from there. Don’t foil my plans again.” Stan winced at the sound of Raine’s whimper, but he dared not to look. “She’s with Axel right now. I’ll pick her up and take her to the Hanger around eleven. You need to be there at that time, and if you’re not, I’m leaving without you.” His footsteps retreated, leaving Raine in the Bailey on her own.

Stan swallowed, standing himself upright. He shut his eyes, but made the courageous move to appear in the doorway, immediately catching Raine’s eyes. She froze, eyes the size of plates and hand clamping tightly to her mouth. She too was petrified, stunned that she had once again ruined Dimitri’s disguise.

Stan exhaled roughly, his hands shaking into fists, “Why? Why are you lying to Aseles?” The blue-haired girl said nothing. Stan grew persistent, “Whatever it is, I’m going to tell her, you liar!”

“Stan??” His eyes shot to the other entryway, his face paling to see her looking to him, then to Raine hurriedly, “Honey, what’s the matter?”

“St-Stan was telling me…mean things,” she suddenly announced, making Jaqueline dart her eyes straight to her son. Oh crap, no.

“Excuse me, young man??” she declared, walking over to him with dress flapping and curling behind her.

Stan shook his head, stumbling his legs back, “N-No! That’s not true! She’s lying!” He grunted, feeling the scruff of his neck being pulled, “M-Mom! She’s lying!”

“I heard you call her a liar moments ago! You’ve become rebellious the past week, Stan. You’re grounded,” Jaqueline stated grimly, picking and tugging him away. “I’m so sorry, Raine.”

Stan’s eyes enlarged, targeting Raine who stood at the doorway, her hands trembling to her shut mouth to expel all her kept secrets. She watched Stan being dragged, but he insisted on fighting, arms flailing to set him free.

“M-Mom! Mom let go!” Stan pleaded, feet trying to glue to the floor, “I-I have to talk to Aseles! Please!”

“You can talk to her after your punishment is lifted,” his mother reaffirmed. The Bailey rose out of view, Stan being tugged farther and farther away, his pleas of being let go ignored and unnoticed.

He had to tell Aseles before she left. Before it was too late!

 

ASELES’ POV:

The severity of it all. The fragileness of one’s heart, it held such a hard limit, but it must’ve been worse when someone didn’t have one. How do they react? How do they feel? Emotions are still there, but the heart always seems to validate it. Having a heart was biased, but that’s what created a division among the worlds, among its people. Light and Dark, bounded to one another but clashed constantly. Is that why it hurt? Is that why it hurt to have a heart so much?

“That sounds awful. All of it,” Aseles shook her head, sitting before the soft mist of the Fountain Courts. It hugged her, warmed her in colors of orange and yellow despite the heavy shadows of the cliff behind. The sprouting waters bloomed like weeping tulips with the walls flowing with evergreen ivy.

“Is Axel doing okay?” She looked over to Dimitri who had accompanied her for some tranquility. Axel bid her a goodbye after Dimitri came to look for her, and smiled at the fact that she actually had someone she could relate to. She wasn’t sure what to say, on the record that she felt horrible that Axel felt isolated and alone. He said he would be fine but....

“I hope so...he didn’t want to tell me much,” she replied.

The water flowed and glistened beneath their dangling feet, Aseles tilting her head a bit forward to inspect the running channel below. Her hands held onto the edge, but withdrew when Dimitri caught her before she leaned forward too far.

“Thanks for saving me from drowning.”

He scoffed, eyes glimmering a soft green, “Sure thing. Did you say anything to that Sora guy?”

Aseles shook her head, “No. What can I tell him?”

Dimitri thought for a moment, his bangs slightly wavering from the soft, focused breeze from the tunnel behind, “Do you think...he would understand your Darkness?”

Aseles frowned, shaking her head, “No....He didn’t understand it before. Why would he understand it now? Especially if Kairi is filling him in, I bet.”

Dimitri scowled, clearly having a distaste of where the conversation was going, “What, is the guy against Darkness or something?”

She rolled her eyes, resting her chin in her prompted hand, “Not when it’s his best friend; only me.”

“Does he not trust you?” Dimitri looked over, arching an brow, “That...really doesn’t make any sense.”

“No, I guess not,” Aseles frowned, slapping her hand down onto her knee. “He just....always suppressed my Darkness, but he ended up being the one who screwed up, and brought up Vanitas.”

“Hmm...then he’s not a good leader, is he?”

Aseles said nothing, exhaling out sharply, “You’re different. I think...that’s why we get along better, Darkness and all.”

“And all?” he chuckled, resting his arm onto the bridge closest to her. “I think that’s too broad to describe a relationship with me.”

“What, now we’re in a relationship? Dimitri, you’re too much sometimes,” Aseles chuckled, blushing when he leaned into her. “You know, you’re getting really smug.” Dimitri stretched a smirk across, a small crease of pink flourishing his cheeks. “Ohh, but I’ve never seen that.”

“It’s the sunset playing with your eyes,” Dimitri defended, looking away.

Aseles argued, “Nu uh! Look!” She cupped his face back, and stared directly to him. His fueled eyes looked down to her, burrowing and piercing into her glance. She smiled, her thumbs caressing the bottom of his lids, “See, you’re blushing.”

“Mnn…maybe,” Dimitri’s ocher eyes flickered, the edge of his mouth perking up.

She chuckled, her eyes rolling to find his forehead connecting to hers, “Maybe? Does your whole face have to be red to be a _yes_?” The sound of loud footsteps echoed from behind them, almost purposing announcing themselves present. Aseles turned over, her hands swiftly withdrawing from Dimitri’s face. Her hips turned and knees pushed to help her stand on the bridge, addressing the advancing Sora, and Kairi. Oh jeezes. Why.

“Why are you standing?” Dimitri blinked up to her.

“I feel…like this is not going to be good,” Aseles sighed, darting her attention to the two. Dimitri groaned briefly, but stood on his feet as well, smoothing down his jacket.

“What is it?” Aseles asked when none of them said anything, standing a yard away.

“Aseles, we need to talk,” Sora ignored Dimitri, directly regarding to her solely. What, was Sora becoming biased with Dimitri too? Figures.

She sighed, arms dropping at her sides, “Sora, there’s nothing to talk about-“

“Yes there is,” the wielder urged on, Kairi remaining close beside him. “Is it true? Are you messing with Darkness again?”

“I think that’s something personal that I have to deal with,” Aseles defended easily, arms now crossing protectively on her chest. “I don’t know why Kairi keeps bothering with it, and _you_ shouldn’t be lecturing me about it.”

“Aseles, we care about you. We’re concerned about what you’re doing, that’s all,” Kairi pressed on, but she could not ignore Dimitri who took a step beside Aseles, causing the redhead to back up a step.

“I think Aseles has already made up her mind on what she wants to do,” Dimitri glared to the two, “She’s taking matters into her own hands; she doesn’t have to listen to someone like you, who only locks her full potential away.”

“I’m not talking to you,” Sora shot his eyes to him, the two males stepping to each other’s space. Aseles swiftly cut in the middle, a hand holding onto Dimitri’s chest, the other extended out to only hover in front of Sora’s. Sora took notice of the intimacy between them, and grew upset.

“He’s the one that’s teaching me, so he _is_ part of this conversation. You were handling your Mark of Mastery, and Dimitri has been helping me on my journeys, along with Raine,” Aseles cut in. The air became uncomfortably humid, her back sweating beneath her jumpsuit.

“Remember what Darkness brought you back then, Aseles,” Sora warned, his eyes catching hers. “You’re my friend, and I don’t want you to put yourself in any more danger than you have by revisiting something that could make you lose everything!”

“The only danger I’ve faced is you suppressing me every time it happened!” Aseles shouted back, the two in heated conversation. “When you did the same thing, Vanitas came out, and I was always there trying to save you! Every time it happened to me, you always...tried to fix me, like I was broken, like I was some toy or malfunctioning robot!”

“Aseles, I apologized for everything that happened between us,” Sora examined her face, unfaltering to approach her closer. “I will always apologize, but this is different!”

“Why, because it’s not you?” Aseles spat back, refusing to let her tears overflow. She was getting angry, she was getting so angry of Sora having to tell her what to do with what was a part of her. She never realized it until he left, until she noticed that Dimitri treated her differently. At least when he was an asshole, he was straight up about it rather than cutting corners and trying to fluff it up.

Dimitri watched supportively beside her, Kairi darting her eyes warily between her two, disputing friends. Aseles knew this was not going to end well for either of them, but it was something she could no longer suppress. She could no longer be suppressed by Sora who had only been here in less than two hours. He was no longer her leader; they were equals.

“You always showed me it was bad, that Darkness this and Darkness that, but not once did you offer to understand it. Dimitri does, so does Raine and Leon!”

Sora stationed himself immobile, “Darkness took everything from us. It took our home, our friends, Riku, Olympus, and now….it’s taken you. Don’t you see, Aseles? Don’t you see the mistake you’re making?? The Darkness will never stop, it will swallow you whole!”

“It won’t, because I have Dimitri,” Aseles shook her head, knees threatening to buckle and break underneath her.

Sora’s eyes threatened to undo her, but she was already numb to that sort of threat, “We’ve known each other longer. What makes you think you can trust him more than us?”

“He’s not the one lecturing me like I was five,” she countered, standing and pressing her shoulder against Dimitri’s upper-arm. “You might have known me longer, but that doesn’t mean you’ve understood me more than he has.”

“Aseles, no!” Kairi exasperatedly replied, her fists slamming down in the air in front of her, “This is wrong! We’re your friends. We’re not trying to fight you…”

“You started it the moment you started to divide us,” she huffed out angrily, “Let’s go, Dimitri-“ she tried to walk her way around, but halted when she felt the snare around her wrist. Almost instantly, Dimitri jerked his hand onto Sora’s wrist, clutching like a metal crane. Blue eyes surged and battled against green-brown.  

“Sora, let go,” Kairi worriedly gripping his arm, her eyes collecting Dimitri’s stone face.

“Yes, Sora. _Let. Go_ ,” Dimitri deeply voiced out. Sora’s teeth grinded underneath his jaw, and leisurely released Aseles from his hold. Dimitri retracted his palm, his opposite hand touching the middle of his leader’s back, “Let’s go.”

“Know, Aseles,” Sora caught her attention, “We’ll never stop fighting this. We’re going to stop the Darkness, together, even if we have to save you from it.” She said nothing, and walked away with Dimitri alongside her. She felt something shatter and recoil inside her stomach, the ticking gears of her head spinning in full velocity. She stopped only until she and her companion reached the bottom steps of the Bailey, her head drawn back to stare at the red tinted sky.

“Aseles?” Dimitri frowned.

Aseles said nothing until a moment later, “Why…can’t they accept me for who I am?”

“Maybe…” Dimitri responded out softly, his hand touching her wrist, soothing where Sora had gripped it, “they don’t deserve you…”

She leveled her head back down, took a breath, and answered, “Where would you take me?”

“What?” he blinked, retracting his hand back.

Aseles continued, “If I went with you, where would you take me?”

Dimitri considered for a moment, “Somewhere where they can never bother you again.” The gears spun faster, threatening to jam and lock in place. She was afraid they would, she was afraid that she would be stuck here. “They’re never going to stop...” Dimitri drew out.

“Then let’s go,” Aseles announced, making Dimitri’s eyes widen. “Let’s go tonight.”

“Are…Are you sure, Aseles?”

“Yes…” she inhaled, biting back tears, “I’m sure.”

 

RIKU’S POV:

He sat in the seat in front of Yen Sid’s desk, his head hunching over as he was reading in silence, his eyes scanning the scribbling of Yen Sid’s handwriting. He flipped to the next page, wondering how he would able to master this spell. Still, his thoughts were roaming back to what had happened during the exam, and how Xeonhart was able to transmit his own being into different vessels. He was just glad Sora didn’t become the last one needed. So, how was he going to obtain that last shell to complete his thirteen? It seemed clear to him that a vessel that important would need a tight bond of a heart, and be willing to side with Xeonhart for some odd reason. Then…his mind envisioned the worst.

“No, she’s safe. She’s safe with Leon,” he muttered to himself.

His thoughts rained back to the white chairs, seated with several in black cloaks. He instantly recognized the one that was sitting down, with dark, curly locks pushing out from within her hood, and her malicious eyes radiating from the shadows within. It was Ihara.

“Master Riku.” Riku stood up gently and turned to look at the opening door, seeing Yen Sid arriving with his arms at his sides.

“Yes, Master Yen Sid?” Riku asked, bowing his head lightly.

“It seems that the war is drawing near...despite our efforts to stop. Have you realized this?” Yen Sid asked, walking over as he headed to sit down on his usual chair.

“Yes, sir,” Riku nodded as he was insisted to sit down. He did so.

“Then it is time we make haste to collect our own wielders,” Yen Sid replied. “I feel as if Ventus, Aqua and Terra will not approach the battlefield as we had hoped. Their whereabouts are long lost, and we simply cannot wait any more time for their approach. I will need you to go collect those wielders for me, Riku, in Radiant Garden to start their training.”

“Yes, Yen Sid. Who would you like me to bring?” Riku asked as he stood once more.

Yen Sid rested his chin on his folding hands, his elbows prompted on the table, “I would like for you to bring me Aseles first. I must speak with her....individually.”

Riku blinked, “About what...if I may ask?”

Yen Sid picked up his eyes, “It is time she must learn of what ill comes her way. She’s running out of time...before something terrible occurs.”

“Do you believe it’s a wise idea to tell her?” Riku asked again, the nuisance voice of Ansem on the rise.

“No...but we must tell her nonetheless. We cannot risk her falling into further jeopardy. We must reveal to her what has been withheld.”

“...Alright,” Riku nodded once. “Who else do I bring?”

“Kairi is another wielder we must have. As well as Raine, and Dimitri. They too have the potential to make a difference of what is approaching.”

Riku blinked. Of course, he sensed the Darkness seeping out of Dimitri, but something didn’t seem...quite right. It felt repressed almost.

“Anyone else, sir?” Riku asked.

“No, that is all. Be careful in your journey. I feel something is about to turn the tides.”

 

AT NIGHT:

The surface of her door scrapped, Aseles pushing herself off the bed, fully dressed and prepared. The air was slightly chilly, her eyes wavering dizzily from how fast she had gotten up. She opened the door softly, peering her head out to see it was Dimitri, outfitted readily with a bag over his shoulder.

“Time to go,” Dimitri replied. He leaned in a bit, his eyes glistening in the dark shadows of the hallway, “Is this what you really want?”

Aseles reached for the bag she had fastened beside the door, gulping gently, “Yes.”

“Then let’s go, before someone wakes up,” he creaked the door  open quietly, enough for her to step out. She did so, with shaking hands gripping onto the railings of the stairs. She was afraid she was going too fast, and trip and tumble down the steps and awake the others. When she reached the bottom, she grasped that it wasn’t her steps that were loud, but the thudding of her sprinting heartbeat.

She stretched into her pocket, feeling the Star Shard twinkle in her possession. Next, she lifted the photo she had found all those eons ago, the arm of the missing girl still a mystery around her younger self, but one she was hoping to solve soon enough. Was it possible that...it belonged to her? This...Ria?

As they headed out of the house, Aseles concluded the fact that she honestly did not know where they were going, but somewhere far away from here. Spending time with Dimitri was all that she needed, and it wasn’t because he kissed her, or wanted to satisfy some fantasy need of running away together. It was deeper than that: he understood her, more than she had ever hoped for. She felt bad about leaving Leon and the others, but Leon would understand. If anything, she could always come back and visit, and hope that Sora and Kairi weren’t around.

“You doing okay back there?” Dimitri announced. She nodded, following silently behind him.

The air was silk with a fog settling among the ground, her skin prickling from the atmosphere. Her stomach started to kick hooves, her feet stopping at the longing steps leading up to the Bailey.

“What is it?” Dimitri looked over.

“I have to....say goodbye to Jackie....and Stan....maybe,” she said, looking back toward the end of the houses.

“Aseles...if you do,” Dimitri quirked a frown, “It will be harder to leave.”

She considered his words, but agreed, “Right. Let’s get going.” Maybe...she can visit them in secret too...

The time to get to the Postern was endless, her eyes wandering across the brick walls, the marbled floor and the refurbished machinery of the high base. The trek inside the hallways and corridors made her nauseous, but Aseles wasn’t planning on changing her mind now. She trekked alongside Dimitri into the maze, and he too was quiet. Was he just as nervous as she was? Or was he thinking about the things they would have to face if they were discovered? She got him into enough trouble as it was, enough that the two had to separate and go to their individuals rooms for the entire night. Maybe he formulated a plan.

Finally, the pair reached the Computer Room, the door of the elevator already open. However, Aseles stopped to see that a figure was walking back and forth along the lit Hanger far below, the blue hair distinctive. They entered the elevator, and when they touched the ground level, Aseles saw she was preparing packages of potions, ethers, elixirs and clothes inside.

“Raine is coming too?” Aseles blinked to Dimitri, setting her bag down.

“I asked her to, truthfully,” Dimitri confessed, throwing Aseles off a bit, “You said we were a team, right?”

“Yeah, that’s true,” the bubbles resettled in her stomach, a small smile creeping on her lips. She waved to Raine who waved back, but appeared to be too preoccupied with taking the last of the supplies in.

“Everything is set,” he replied with a satisfied grin. He gripped her shoulder, making her look up to him.

“I can’t believe....we’re actually going to do this...” she scoffed softly, her eyes locating the ramp leading to the cockpit. She gripped her bag tightly, and nodded, “You’re a bad influence on me.”

“It’s for the best, you’ll see,” the male reassured. “I can teach you all the tips and tricks to get it all down. But we’ll be patient, when you’re ready-“

A gasp of air, “ASELES!” Aseles jumped at the urgent tone, looking to see the elevator had lifted, and was now bringing a person down to their level. She narrowed her eyes, looking to Dimitri and the paused and alarmed Raine on his other side. The metal door cut open, a small figure stumbling out. It was Stan, his hands on his knees with his chest heaving greatly.

“Stan?” Aseles questioned out loud.

“Aseles!” Dimitri missed swiping her arm, her bag dropped to lessen her burden of the weight. She hurried forward, aiding Stan from his cowering figure, “Hey-hey, what’s wrong? Catch your breath!”

“A-Aseles! Don’t g-go! Don’t go!” Stan shook his head, continuing to intake the air poorly. His eyes shot forward, then back up to perplexed and puzzled ones, “They tricked you!! They were lying to you this whole time!!” Aseles’ eyes enlarged, but she straightened up, feeling the ice pour into her veins. Her legs trembled, an incredulous expression spreading across her face.

“Stan....? What are-“

“Dimitri and Raine tricked you!” Stan gasped out, wrapping his arms around his abdomen.

She took a step back, a twisted, confused smile playing on her lips, “S-Stan?”

“I heard them talking! They were planning for you to go with them! They’re working for the Subs, Aseles! You have to believe me!” Her eyes widened tremendously, and she swiftly turned, seeing Dimitri and Raine standing side by side.

“...What is this???” she questioned loudly, eyebrows dropping down in an angle. “...D-Dimitri?” When they said nothing, when Aseles saw Dimitri’s lips twitch at the accusation, she swiftly tugged Stan behind her, feeling his hands grip at the back of her belt. He was desperately trying to regain his breathing.

“The kid is clearly out of his mind,” Dimitri held his gaze to her, arms extending out as if to display his righteousness, “You can’t honestly believe what he’s saying, right? If he wants to come with us, then let him.”

Her eyes maneuvered to Raine, who was quaking in her place, “Raine?”

“I’m so sorry, Aseles!” she bellowed out, dropping to her knees. Aseles felt the instant pin dropping in the silence of her mind, rocketing all senses to being defensive. They had to be fucking kidding her.

“Stan, press the red button on the panel above,” she urged, swinging her keyblade out. “I need you to push it and run, okay?”

“But-“

“GO!” she ordered, turning back to look at him. He quickly nodded as sprinted to the elevator, Aseles waiting for the door to close. The metal crate began to rise, and it was there she shouted when she saw the spinning keyblade aimed for the mechanism above. She deflected the oncoming keyblade with her own strike raid, making it spin out of control, and land a few feet from Dimitri. His weapon stabbed into the metal ground, glooming a dark navy. Aseles recalled her keyblade, eyes blaring with betrayal to the two people across from her.

“Aseles, please-“ Raine slapped her hands to her mouth.

“NO! I’m not going anywhere with you two!” she shouted, feeling her face burn with hot anger, “I want answers. I want to know what Stan is talking about!” The air crackled in intensity, all sirens of the Hanger going off.

“ _Code Red. Code Red. Town is in Code Red._ _Hanger Violation in Progress_.”

Dimitri stepped forward, Aseles watching him carefully pick up his keyblade from the floor. Suddenly, he held it sideways, the weapon collecting dark wisps from around his palm. The air shook and cracked, feeling the thousands shards of darkness sprouting from his exploding keyblade’s exterior. In Dimitri’s hand was a new weapon, a large gladiator sword with gauze flowing along the handle. It began to wrap and collect around Dimitri’s wrist and forearm, and the way he held it….

“I didn’t want to do this....but you left me with no choice,” Dimitri replied lowly, his face turning into a grim expression.

_“You’re looking for answers, Aseles.”_

She toppled in her step, gripping onto a nearby crate beside her. Her eyes fluttered to stay awake, the searing pain tripling every two seconds. Something was bashing and expanding in her head, in her thoughts that it almost felt like a thousand drills digging into her skull. She clutched her hair desperately, her grunts and seethes growing louder every passing moment.

_“Aseles, you n-need to focus!”_

_“When are you going to learn, Aseles?”_

_“You need to focus! It was him! It was him all along!”_

She groaned loudly, both hands rummaging and seeping into her hair. Her keyblade clattered, her knees falling to the ground. She was trying to breathe. She was trying to not suffocate.

_”Give it up, Aseles. Then you’ll get what you want soon.”_

_“Save yourself, Aseles. Save yourself!”_

_“We’ve hit a problem, haven’t we?”_

_“What did I say, Aseles?”_

_The sound of feet tapping along the brick floor, the alleyway dark and closed._

_“Don’t look so good, do you?”_

_“You should really give up soon, Aseles.”_

_Cold fingertips lifted her jaw, and she cringed from the strain on her neck and shoulders. There, she watched the pair of hazel eyes hold her, examine her, behold her._

_“No, you don’t look good at all.”_

_He reached forward, and sunk in his darkened fingertips, radiating and pulsing the Darkness within her._

_“I changed my mind: I think you need to at least remember one damn thing.”_

_“So, how about it, Aseles?_

_Instead of breaking you,_

_why don’t we….make you?”_

_“Aseles, get up! He’s going to get you! Dimitri is going to get you!”_

She screamed, writhing and squirming on the floor.

_“I cannot hold him off much longer. You must get up!”_

_“There’s no use running.”_

_“I know exactly what I’m doing.”_

_He posed his sword forward, and lunged to her. Ria was tossed back, and hit the ground, defeated._

_“My mind has already been made up.”_

_“So, you want to know.”_

_“Heh, why don’t you ask”_

_“That wouldn’t make sense, would it? Who would you ask? No one really, truly understands you._

_I do.”_

_“I understand you.”_

_“Aseles, why don’t you start putting the pieces back together?”_

_“I’ll help you. All you need to do...is ask…"_

_“Didn’t he promise you he was going to save you? Can you imagine what would have happened if Vanitas decided to play some tag with you?”_

_“You’re always one to run out of patience for things and people who can’t get things done.”_

_“Best friend? We hardly know each other.”_

_“But I suppose...this is just in your nature.”_

_Up next was Goofy.... His opponent, the hooded figure walked to face him. The tattered, brown cloth wavered in the feeble wind... Goofy was suddenly skidded across the ground...The hooded figure rested his open sword at the side, its blade brimming with a dark presence. The cloth around the handle was wrapped suitably around the figure’s wrist... He barely touched the ground, and the crowd..._

_“What are you afraid of the most?”_

She was beginning to regain feeling in her fingers, a fiery wall shrouding her face. Her hair hanged along her eyes, seeing Dimitri was struggling to stay on his feet, Raine beside him, attempting to get him up to his feet.

_“So…think you got this?”_

_The hooded figure dashed to the side of the stadium, his eyes watching the group walking to the other side of the stands, clearly occupied and away. Aseles has lost sight of him. Now was his chance._

_A dark portal opened, a snarky, British male stepping out, “Dimitri, what took you so long, chap?”_

_“Here, the twins are going to be acting soon.”_

_“Ugh, you expect me to wear this? You’re thinner than I am.”_

_“Just do it, will you? We don’t have much time.”_

_“Oi, hopeful to get her on a date already?”_

_“Shut up, Chad.”_

He was...connected to her.

_He winced, looking down to the ring tattoo embedded on his chest. Why did she have to go play hero? Why did she have to go in the Grid alone?_

_“I’ll retrieve her.”_

_“How do you know where she is?” Leon argued._

_“I will, trust me.”_

_The two tattoos laced and connected over one another, creating that of a compass._

_“I will always find her.”_

Aseles’ eyes spoke of something demonic, an anger she had never thought she would ever confront or feel. She glanced along the ground, and up to Dimitri who was now standing, Raine backing up when he pushed her aside. Aseles’ teeth grinded and clamped onto each other, her teeth bared to watch Dimitri’s smirk rise, defeated and exposed.

Her arms shook, keyblade held tightly back in hand, “It was you.”

_“Defeat him, Aseles! Fight your Darkness! He is your Darkness! You are his Light!”_

“It was _you!”_ Aseles screamed, the tears no longer welcomed, but dehydrated, dried and evaporated. There was no more left. This was it.

“Well....what do you know?” Dimitri scoffed, gladiator sword shining in his possession. “I guess it was.”

“Why!? Why did you do this?!” Aseles bellowed, eyes flaring a bright silver. Dimitri posed the same threat, his arm whipping and storming with dark waves. The shadows on his face delved and developed, his hazel eyes nothing but a dark void.

“You are the reason I became like this, but wouldn’t you like to remember in that vacant memory bank of yours!” Dimitri shouted out. “The daughter of a wielder, who forbid me to see you because she believed you could be something great, and left _me_ to rot. Guess what? You’re nothing, you’re nothing on your own!” The Darkness swam and escalated across his arms, his hair whipping upward like a rampant tornado. It had been suppressed, his Darkness had been suppressed this whole time.

“Princess of Radiant Garden, let me lend you the ways of how Darkness is _really_ used!”

“No, this is over!” Aseles prepared herself with her glowing keyblade, outlined in a sparking, irate gold.

“The story doesn’t end here, it’s just getting started!” Dimitri roared out, and lunged to a charge.

“Aseles, no!” Raine pleaded, but was tossed back by the massive blow of power. The air crackled in golden and navy sparks, Aseles repeatedly slamming and jaggedly scrapping her keyblade against Dimitri’s sword. The air between them escalated in a frenzy, Aseles hair frantically in golden flames above her head. Her body shuddered of the great influence that consumed her, teeth crashing against each other in angry scowls against Dimitri’s roaring and bared teeth.

 “Argh!” Dimitri retorted, swinging his blade upwards with crackling electricity. Aseles skidded to the sides, eruption of dark volcanoes spewing across the floor. Aseles stretched her keyblade in front of her, flinging Light orbs across the air, grazing him barely from how quickly he deflected each oncoming attack. The smoke cleared and pushed down when both blades came into contact in the center, a charging orb generating around the two foes.

“You think you can run away from what defines you? That’s you, always you Aseles, always running!” Dimitri sneered. The energy around them increased in size, Light and Darkness infusing and countering like hot whips and swipes. The metal ground beneath them dented, tiles of metals sent flying and colliding across the field. Aseles leapt back, but the break was short-lived, his sword grown double in size. It smashed repeatedly against her keyblade, the golden edges threatened with dark lavender bursts of energy to douse it out.

“I’m not running now!” Aseles shouted, keyblade spinning dangerously in her grasp, “FIRE!” A whirlwind of blaze encased Dimitri in, and she was ready for his thrust. He did not disappoint; Dimitri’s strike pierced her defense like that of a fencing opponent, giving her enough time to disconnect herself from her keyblade, gold eyes now replaced with blue. Dimitri’s eyes amplified, but he was too slow.

Aseles glowing limbs kicked Dimitri back, and he was sent cutting across the air, hurtling into nearby crates at the end of the field. Wood and splinters drizzled, Dimitri’s glowing figure getting up from the mess.

“Everything you said to me, it was all a lie,” her tongue burned, the keyblade now a definite shield in front of her.

“The past cannot be erased. What your mother did to me was unforgivable. I intend to make you see the error of _her_ ways,” Dimitri tightened his eyes, unexpectedly releasing his blade.

He gripped the gauze and hauled the blade over his head, spiraling it around and around. He flung his blade forward like a firing arrow, Aseles shooting her arm up to defend herself behind her shield. The Darkness on contact suddenly began to blister and crack her defense, as if it were made of paper over a hoard of rioting fire. Dimitri retracted his blade and shot it forward again, the sword following his control with the extension of his gauze. She blocked again, her feet skidding violently back.

“Dimitri, stop!” Raine shouted from behind him.

“Do not interfere! Once again, you screwed up!” Dimitri hollered back, shooting his glance her way. Raine shook her head, and she too called out her keyblade. Aseles’ eyes widened, and she dashed forward.

“Raine, don’t!”

“I will not let you fight Aseles!” Raine gritted her teeth, “Xehanort has my family, but Aseles is my family too!”

“You think you can take _me_ on??” Dimitri glared with scorching eyes, and shot his blade to her direction. Raine swung her keyblade upwards, but her ice shield was easily broken, and cut in half.

“Raine, NO!” Aseles’ eyes shot open, her mouth parted open in horror. The Darkness unleashed steamed along Raine’s side, her keyblade out of reach and her hair over her face. She wasn’t moving. “Raine!”

Dimitri retrieved his blade, and his eyes slowly maneuvered to glare at Aseles. Her eyes searched his, but the attitude was resolute; this was the Dimitri she had trusted only moments prior.

A dark portal flickered poorly into view, but Dimitri didn’t hesitate, and ran right for it.

“No, stop!!” Aseles growled, giving chase.

“You want to save them? You want to be the hero??” He ducked into the portal, and it steamed off into the air. Aseles grunted, her eyes glaring at the sound of Vanitas’ voice ringing in the air, “Then show me!”

“R-Raine!” Aseles sprinted, skidding to a halt beside her friend. She rolled her to her side, exhaling shakily to feel her breathing. Aseles’ form switched on command, and she pressed her golden-lit hands against Raine’s side, removing the Darkness Dimitri had inflicted her with. Her eyes flickered, her hands searching in front of her for something. The red lights in the Hanger continued to blare, but Aseles knew she was running out of time. She couldn’t wait any longer. Dimitri had the answers, he had all the answers for her, and she wasn’t going to let him get away.

“Leon...Leon will come for you,” Aseles reached into Raine’s pockets pulling out whatever elixirs, potions and ethers she had. She pushed them into her pouches, and stood up, “He’ll...come get you.”

_“Don’t let the Darkness consume you. Don’t let it win.”_

“A-Aseles...don’t...” Raine mouthed out, but it was unheard as Aseles was now sprinting for the end of the Hanger, seeing the night sky still hovering over the world. She reached the end of the rocky edge, her hands hurriedly pushing into her pocket. She shut her eyes, but didn’t hesitate to bring out the Star Shard, and lifted it up in her possession. It began to glow and rattle, the inside of the crystal blinding her with light.

“Take me there! Take me to him!” She was hastily heaved in a vortex, and she curled herself into the transportation device. The air around her kicked and tossed her, and she gritted her teeth to muffle out any scream or cry. Different colors and shades slammed underneath her closed eyelids, and when she thought she would puke from the many spins-

_Thirteenth vessel._

 

_Thirteenth vessel._

 

_Thirteenth vessel._

 

_Thirteenth vessel._

 

_Thirteenth vessel._

 

she rolled and hit the ground, hard.

She grunted and found her body flinching, facing the dirt floor beneath her. She spit out the taste of dirt and moss, feeling the scraps of cuts along her cheek and leg. Her head shook briefly, but when she opened her eyes, it was nothing short of a nightmare.

Why...why did the Star Shard bring her to the Underworld of the Olympus Coliseum?


	25. Checkmate

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> One more to go. Thank you. Thank you so much for everything. I don't know...I don't know how I would've gotten here in any other way but...thank you.
> 
> Please, enjoy. The journey is almost over.
> 
> Sincerely,  
> -Keys

RIKU’S POV:

“Something is amiss! His Majesty will join you soon!”

His chest heaved, blurs of green and withered brown swiping on either side of him; he was advancing his way through the residential housing, Yen Sid having transported him in the Market Place. The sirens wailing along the districts was enough to signal him something was going wrong, but when he made it to the Borough, all noise ceased. He didn’t stop though, and raced up the Bailey. Below it, the door to the U.S.S. had been left open, with Cid and Yuffie arguing inside. Riku was about to step inside, but what Yuffie shouted made him recoil in place.

“The Hanger is completely destroyed! Aseles is missing!”

“N-No....” Riku stepped back, and redirected his way to the Postern. When he reached the metal platform, he was sure he was about to puke his lungs out of his throat, the burning clash of hands slapping at his sides. He pushed it away, jogging through the hallways steadily, wanting to stop but being unable to. No, did the worse already happen? Was he too late?

He reached the Computer Room, finding all accesses to it open, and several figures moving about the bottom floor. Riku clamped his hands against the metal wall of the elevator, his entire structure threatening to collapse. His bones felt as if they could snap at any movement, his mind disorganized and short-circuiting.

The elevator stopped, Riku literally prying the doors open to let himself through. In the middle of the room was Leon, accompanied by Axel and Kairi to tend to a fallen Raine. She was having trouble speaking, her legs tucked beneath her with her strands acting like curtains to conceal her face. A little away was Sora, but his front faced the open hatch of the Hanger, knuckles white as snow.

“R-Riku!” Kairi called out, and she rushed over. Riku made his way, noticed by the others. Riku’s eyes zipped to Kairi who stood in front of him now. Frankly, he was afraid to ask.

“What happened?”

“A-Aseles...” Kairi covered her mouth with trembling hands.

Riku’s eyes narrowed, urgency in his tone, “Where is she?”

“She’s gone.....” Leon did not move from his spot, continuing to wrap up Raine’s arm with a cloth bandage. His hair hung over his eyes, Riku unable to decipher his anger correctly.

“Gone? Where did she go?” Riku instigated, but his teeth gritted when he realized that Sora had not made any moves to come closer. He was immobile in his spot. “Someone tell me!”

Axel walked over, arms swinging at his sides, and he stopped a yard away from Riku, “She chased after Dimitri. Raine and Dimitri lured her into a coup to take her.”

“No....No,” Riku exhaled sharply. He skidded past Kairi who failed to grip him. He now stood over Raine, and without a thought he hauled her up from the front of her shirt, catching Leon off-guard. The girl struggled only briefly until Riku glared right to her, her hair slid back to reveal her red-strained eyes. Leon pushed him off, Axel aiding him on holding Riku back.

“Where is she?!” Riku cried out, eyes targeted to a stricken Raine. “Where were you going to take her?!”

“Riku, stop!” His limbs halted, head swiftly turning to Sora who stepped in view. The brunette was expressionless, but Riku knew better; he was trying not to look depressed, to hide away the crushed glint in his eyes. But, Riku obeyed him, and stepped back from Raine.

“She doesn’t know,” Sora exhaled, words boring into Riku’s ears, “Only Dimitri did.”

“Why? Why would she go after him?” Riku shook his head, “It doesn’t make any sense!”

“....Because he knew her...” Raine stifled out, her hands pressing against the center of her chest. All eyes directed to her crying face, “Dimitri knew her long ago....Aseles went after him to find out. I-I tried...to stop her but.....I couldn’t!”

“Know her?” Axel constricted his eyes, “You mean as in..... _knew_ who she was?” Raine nodded, but she couldn’t say no more. Her quiet weeps filled the space, raising Riku’s anxiety.  “This is....all my fault! I should’ve told her sooner....”

Leon voiced out carefully, his throat lurching, “Maybe....if you did....she wouldn’t have left.”

Riku shut his eyes, the guilt latching at the base of his stomach. It was hauling him down, his hand clamping to grip the center of his chest. His face fell and his teeth clamped to muffle out the sound stuffed in his throat.

“Riku, what’s wrong?” Kairi gripped his arm, but he couldn’t feel it. No....no no no.....this was all wrong. He screwed up. He screwed it up.

“Riku?” Sora’s questioning tone undid him, making the silver-haired male take a step back. Everyone was staring at him, and he knew....it was too late.

“No....it’s all my fault,” Riku grimly pulled out of his throat, “I should’ve told her. _We_ should’ve told her. Me, Mickey, Yen Sid....Jaqueline. We should’ve told _her.”_

“What are you talking about?” Sora turned to look at him.

Riku stared at Sora, and his jaw became steel, “Sora, I-“

“I will explain...” The teen jumped, the voice of the familiar mouse coming from behind. Riku didn’t turn though, nor did he look at King Mickey stand next to him. He kept his crystal eyes to the ground.

“Your Majesty,” Leon addressed.

“...What is it? What were...you keeping from Aseles?” Sora interrogated cautiously, blinking as the chain of his necklace ringed when he turned.

King Mickey sighed heavily, “Ansem. Ansem the Wise told us not to tell her. It wasn’t Riku’s fault...it was mine. I pressured him to not to.” He continued even though Riku refused to look at him, “Aseles couldn’t remember her memories...because they were stored within someone else. We didn’t know who it was, but now I think we know who it was...”

“Dimitri,” Axel snapped his hands into fists.

“The links in her past were corrupted, because Ansem made it that way,” Mickey finished.

“Why didn’t you tell her?” Sora’s voice took a sharp turn.

“If we did, if she remembered too quickly...” Mickey’s mouth turned firmly into a line. He couldn’t finish.

“What?” Sora persisted, standing in front of the pair.

“The information would have been too much for her,” Riku exhaled. Sora shot his eyes to him. “Aseles...would’ve been _just_ a body, with no more memories. The program inside of her would’ve demolished all thought-”

The hands clutching and hauling his shoulders were unmistakably his best friend’s, but Riku kept his posture, “Why? Why would...why would you do that?! Why would you all lie to her?!”

“I’m sorry, Sora,” Riku stared into Sora’s hurtful eyes. “I really, truly am.”

 

DIMITRI’S POV:

The male stayed in his sitting position, elbows on his knees with his upper back hunching forward. He stared to his removed jacket, but tossed it angrily forward, wincing at the large bruise healing on his left side. He was leaning his back against the rock wall, the cell of a sitting figure all the way across from him. The bars were thorny and stone, the space inside squeezed and contained. The older male inside was three years older than him, with gray hair perked along his hair and tussled near his neck. His bronze eyes drowsily collected to pinpoint Dimitri’s tossed jacket, then to the owner.

Dimitri gazed at him, but couldn’t hold it and began to examine the two other cells about the room. One held a female he had defeated long ago, with black hair splayed with raspberry streaks like a flower too early to be picked, and laid carelessly on the ground. She was unconscious, but the other keyblade wielder in the second cell was on the verge of it. His dirty-blond hair was tangled, his face angular from the lack of nourishment and health he had when he was first brought here.

“Are you paying me one last visit, before I pass away in my sleep?” the gray-haired man announced weakly. Dimitri looked at him again, the shine in his eyes dimmed. It was as if the cavern itself were sucking the life out of him. His arms were no longer perked with muscle, and his pink blood on his injured right arm was now a sickly green, clearly infected.

“Why?” Dimitri started.

“Why what...?”

“Why...did you insist on chasing after me?” Dimitri curled his digits in tight fists. “Why did you surrender to our fight?”

“...Because I found you,” the man replied softly, “I promised our mother I would find you.” Not this bullshit again.

“You’re pathetic, Tanner,” Dimitri snapped, eyes shooting to the side.

“Am I? I don’t believe so,” Tanner pompously responded despite his weakened stamina, “What makes me curious is why....I’m still alive.”

Dimitri grinded his teeth against each other, “So I can see you suffer. The same way you made me suffer.”

“No...you’re wrong. We both know that-“

“You don’t know that,” Dimitri spat out, now standing.

“Then why did you kill Blayne? Surely if you killed him, you have the need to take me out next,” Tanner began coldly, his eyes welding like hot sparks to oust the storm in his younger brother. “I treated you as bad as he did. It’s only fair to you.”

Dimitri attention flashed to the childhood he once had; he could recall those dark eyes of Blayne...and his taunts and kicks to him. Simply...the sight of seeing him was overwhelming and had to be taken care of. He had not further use for that kind of intolerance, of that kind of evil that had grown in that man’s body. Dimitri had gone in search for him...but......

“But...let’s be honest, Dimitri,” Tanner replied out slowly. “Did you really kill him?”

“Yes, I did! And I’d do it again!” Dimitri declared, the other two occupants in the cell unaffected of his yell. 

Though, Tanner hummed out a profound tone, “No...I don’t believe you.” He suddenly began to chuckle when he saw Dimitri’s face draw back.

 “What are you smiling about?”

“It proves I’m right,” Tanner replied, smiling, “You’re still the same Dimitri I once knew.”

“You can’t prove that.”

“I don’t need to. You’re an open book.”

“Shut up!” Dimitri bellowed, but his voice no longer held the vigor it once had in the beginning of their conversation.

“You saw her...didn’t you?” Dimitri’s eyes marginally expanded, his arms freezing at his sides. His brother chuckled, a scoff escaping, “What was she like? Still nice? Offer you sweets like the good old days?”

Dimitri was having trouble breathing, concentrating on a single part of the floor, “Yeah...I guess.”

“Bet she’s pretty, by the way you’re blushing-“

“I’m not blushing!” Dimitri deflected with a yell, his orbs attempting to threaten Tanner.

Tanner remained composed, cradling his incapacitated arm, “Funny...after ten years you would think you were this really bad and insensitive guy, and Aseles _still_ ends up bringing out the person you truly are.”

Dimitri cringed, his feet now pacing across the cavern, damp floor, “You don’t know me.”

“I didn’t before...but…” Tanner softly retorted, gloom crossing his angular face, “There’s no way I can talk you out of what you’re doing?”

Dimitri halted, venom spewing from his tongue, “There’s no way in hell I’m going to listen to _you_ ever again.”

“Then, I can only hope Aseles will knock some sense into you,” Tanner brushed his bony knuckles, “Not even the hell we’re _literally_ inside of can stop her.”

“No....no you’re wrong!” he fought off the thoughts, the memories, the pleasures of having her touching and hugging him. How her waist fitted perfectly in his arms, the way her fingers sunk into his hair and ruined its pattern. He could still feel the thousands of moths battling inside of him, smell her sweet fragrance along her neck and feel the hot air escaping her plumped lips. It was alluring, and he wanted it.

“She’ll come after you, Dimitri,” his elder brother announced carefully, a small smile formed along his lips, “She always has.”

Treading feet drummed along the rock walls, Dimitri catching sight of his best friend, Chad; his built hand pressed against the cavern wall. He signaled to Dimitri with his free one, black hair slicked and straight.

“Let’s go, Dark Boy,” he chortled with a satisfied slant of his mouth. Dimitri shot him a glare, but stopped when Tanner sat up further.

“Think about it,” he drew out with a heeding glance. “Then you’ll know where your heart _truly_ lies.”

“Emotional exchange is over,” Chad interrupted curtly, waving to Dimitri harder, “We can’t waste time.” Dimitri left with a last glance, walking out in a hectic pace away from the dungeons. Halfway down the corridor, Chad stepped alongside him, presenting him with a leery stare. The younger man grew bothered.

“Jeezes, what is it?” he grumbled, coming to a stop at the end of the pathway. There stood Vanitas, an impudent smirk _asking_ for a punch, Dimitri was sure.

“Someone isn’t in a cheery mood,” Chad thumbed to him, making Vanitas scoff in response.

“Then I have good news for him,” the cloned-Sora announced, his hand on his hip, “We have a new visitor in the Underworld.”

Dimitri narrowed his eyes slightly, his body erecting more firm, “...Who?”

“Well, your dear Princess of course,” Vanitas answered gladly. Dimitri’s eyes widened, freezing onto Vanitas’ bold statement. His arms dropped down at his sides as he shot his eyes to the ground, scanning, processing, coming to grips with whatever reason he had left. Aseles...was here?

“Why?” Dimitri snapped quickly, enraged, amusing Chad of his reaction.

Vanitas tilted his head, grinning darkly, “Why don’t you go ask her?” He continued to watch the ground with arms at his sides, clubbed hands trembling. His hair fell to cover his cheeks and eyes, his chest heaving.

Aseles had arrived. She was a fool.

Vanitas’ footsteps retreated into the darkness of the cavern, “Let’s set the stage for her; a good welcome, you could say.”

Was...was her change of fate...his bidding? His fault? Did he do that much damage to her that she was simply...unaware of what she was doing? He closed his eyes as he felt Light pulsing ever so slightly in his body, the tattoo on his chest beginning to glow somewhat as he began to tap into her energy. She seemed fit and well, and he knew better; she would not go down so easily, and that’s what worried him the most.

“Time to get the show on the road,” Chad patted the back of his hand against Dimitri’s shoulder, making him glance to him. He studied Chad, and he scowled when he caught his golden irises; he knew he had lost his best friend, the possession of poison having brightened his once black eyes. The Chad he knew would have believed this was all ridiculous, and wouldn’t have let himself be swayed so easily, much less take orders from anyone.

“Chad?” Dimitri cut him off in his step, making the British man eye him. “We need to break away.”

“What is that supposed to mean?” his friend cocked a brow.

Dimitri inhaled, and tried again, “Did you ever think about going home? Going back to London?”

The place alone brought Chad’s grin to a downward fault, “Why would you think I would want to go back?”

“You have your daughter. Don’t you remember her?” Dimitri urged with opens palms.

Chad’s eyes narrowed, and he stepped forward to grip Dimitri at his shirt. He yanked him, making him wobble in his step. Chad was much shorter than Dimitri, an inch taller than Aseles, but the height did not diminish his accurate eyes from glaring up to Dimitri.

“Milly has nothing to do with this. This is my choice,” Chad irately replied, and tossed Dimitri back. He caught his footing, his hand slapping to the wall to prevent himself from falling. His eyes targeted Chad carefully, a snarl rising in the shorter man’s throat, “Whatever garbage your brother posed into you, get rid of it. We have a mission to collect the new vessel.” With that he whipped around, and stormed off to where Vanitas disappeared. Dimitri sighed heavily from his battling reasoning and intuition.

If he…didn’t follow through, his original home Thebes would not be returned to its normal state. Xehanort had Tanner in a cell, and the whereabouts of his eldest brother were still hidden…for now. He…he had to go through with it, but if he did…..Aseles was in danger.

“Shit…” Dimitri mouthed to himself, shoulders tensing of the weight plummeting onto them. He had…to make a choice. He had to make his decision; he couldn’t bide any further time.

All that time, all those moments with her....such waste blossomed to charm and memories. He felt the tug of his heartstrings, threatening to collapse his vital organ into the acids of his stomach. The moments they shared were ones he never thought could be achieved, things he felt like he didn’t deserve. He had done....such hurtful things to other people, throughout his travels because of something that happened long ago. Aseles’ mother isolated him from her...but why didn’t Aseles try harder to change it? Was all that anger....wasted on something she had no control over?

No, he had set in stone of his intentions....he had to do what benefitted him the most. He had to make the decision to save himself.

He reached back to his blade strapped to his back, and pulled it out in full frontal view. He unstripped and wrapped the gauze along his dominant wrist and forearm, his chest exhaling unevenly of the overpowering consequence that would soon unfold.

He needed to see her…one last time.

One more moment, that’s all he was asking for.

                                                                                                                                            

ASELES’ POV:

The ceiling and walls were enriched of obsidian black, spreading like tattered wings of marble. The fog circling along her ankles crawled up her legs, Aseles instinctively moving to dispel the nature of it. She could see her breath float and flutter around her, despite the air not being freezing. Something was certainly amiss.

_We have a lost little bird. Isn’t this fun?_

Her head whirled in different directions, to the unseen ceiling to the sweeping surface beneath her boots. She could swear that the floor was breathing and moving on its own, but the fact of her predicament was much worse when she saw that she was the only lit object in the cavern. Everything was closing in on her, dark hands interlocking and chaining her body down. Was something going to eat her whole? She stood no chance in this place-

_Has the knight come to save the Prince?_

The two different voices boomed, both taunting and tugging Aseles to a psychological torture she was unprepared for.

_I wonder, if she strong enough to take on the dragons of the castle?_

A third, feminine voice stretched her words across the many corridors and chambers, but Aseles wasn’t able to pinpoint the direction location of it. All three were all over her.

“Wherever you are, I will defeat you!” Aseles shouted, her eyes darting uncontrollably across the area. “I will find my answers! I will rescue my friends!”

_You wish to put a halt to my schemes in my domain, Aseles?_

A new voice chimed in, and she felt the arteries of her heart clog and choke, the sands of doubt and terror collecting to threaten her lifeless. The valves sputtered out weakly to supply her veins, all motion in her limbs stopped and cold. She was unsure what a heart attack felt like, but this was coming pretty close.

_You think you can change your fate?_

“Leave…me alone,” Aseles flinched, her hand gripping at the front of her forehead. Sparks and hot flashes of Radiant Garden were creeping into her mind. She could see the Fountain Courts, the Castle Town, and all channels of walkways leading to the tall castle-

_Wouldn’t you like to remember, Aseles?_

“Tch!” She kneeled to the ground, keyblade clattering before her. Her eyes rolled from the massive intake of pain, all noise prohibited from relieving itself out.

_I can give you all the answers you’re looking for. All you have to do….is give i-_

_“No!”_ The space around her cleared, a powering surge blowing the crawling fog off of Aseles. She shut her eyes from the bright light that beheld her, but what she saw astounded her.

“T-Terra,” she whispered to the ghost-like image of the once keyblade wielder. He was protected in his armor, the ears of the helmet lit heavily to enhance the deep crevices of his neck and shoulders. He towered over her protectively, cape curling lightly of the breeze he had conjured upon arriving.

_“Stand, Aseles.”_ She did so, picking up her keyblade in the process. Terra’s helmet gazed to her, and she shut her eyes repeated to wake herself up from her illusion. He wasn’t going away. _“You are not dreaming. You are awake.”_

“Terra, how are-“ she tried to fight, but she felt safe, taken of his sudden presence.

_“You must leave the Underworld,”_ he announced gravely, a deep octave propelling her off balance.

She shook her head, “I can’t. My friends must be here. My memories, Dimitri knows who I am.”

_“I must protect you, but I cannot here,”_ Terra warned. _“Xehanort controls this world, it is his Darkness that is holding the world prisoner.”_

“I need to save my friends, Terra,” she insisted, teeth clamping once. “I can’t leave without them.”

Terra remained still, but his faintly rising shoulders indicated he was pondering on her words. Her eyes searched the dimmed entrance of the many caverns set before her, where she stood being the main center. Behind she could see the stone steps leading to the surface of the world. She must’ve rolled all the way from the top to the bottom step when she arrived. If she could get to the top, and take the Star Shard with her-

_“Then I will guide you to the best of my abilities,"_ Terra bowed his head once. Aseles regarded him, and stepped slightly to the side to let him take the main front of the labyrinth they faced, _“Be warned, I will only be able to guide you in. Guiding you out is a feat I may not be able to accomplish.”_

“I understand,” she nodded.

He turned to her, metal cranking, _“Do not let your connection to Dimitri sway your decisions. You must rescue your friends, and that is all.”_

She considered his words, “What if...Dimitri knows something about me?”

Terra said nothing, then, _“Then be accepting of the consequences that unfold after.”_ He lifted a plated hand up, and a stream of gold throbbed along a certain pathway. It rippled out in cushioned waves, and began to ride out a string of tides along the ground.

_“Hurry.”_

She took off into an immediate run, her keyblade gleaming in hand. The chrome neck glistened despite the dark mass of the caverns. The channels of Terra’s spell made haste and cut around a corner, Aseles following after it, and nearly choking her own tongue. Across the open area of rocky ground was Vanitas, keyblade effectively rotating in his hand, his eyes locked onto her. His bold grin stretched, and he didn’t say a word when he charged. Aseles remained firm, and battled against him viciously.

The two opponents slashed and crossed weapons in rough thrusts, flashes of dark threads countering against Aseles’ golden gales. Her hair flickered strong and flaming along her head, but Vanitas did not disappoint with equal shares of power.

“The hero is running out of tricks!” Vanitas sneered, and slammed his keyblade downward.

Aseles held her ground, eyes fueled with silver virtue, “I’m not here for you!” She locked her keyblade directly with Vanitas’, and roared, “FIRE!” A harsh gale spiked from beneath her feet, and Vanitas was tossed flying across the air. Aseles took the chance, swinging her keyblade horizontally across, and sent a heavy wall of Light in his direction. She reverted to her normal form, and made way to cut into the next sector of pathways Terra’s light was taking her to. She cut across the corners of rock and boulder, able to hear Vanitas shout after her.

“Playing games, Aseles? Not the very appropriate place or time!” She could feel his presence chasing after her, her chest heaving greatly, but the gasps of her running lungs stifling any noise to throw her cover. She darted to the next spew of ripples in a certain corridor, and slapped her back against the wall. She kneeled onto the ground, her hands slamming to her nose and mouth to prevent her from breathing too heavy. She shut her eyes, attempting to regain her breath and focus.

“Of course, I’m not the only one that’s playing with you,” Vanitas cooed out, a chuckling ringing out. His footsteps sounded like they were headed to a different direction. She waited, and nearly fainted when she saw the pair of footsteps on her left. It was Terra again, signaling her to stand.

_“He won’t find you; I have performed a spell to conceal your Light in this dark realm, but the cover will not last the longer you stay.”_ He extended his arm down the pathway, the golden circles now darting out in flat and zigzagging lines, _“Hurry, Aseles.”_

She shot to a painful run, her hand clutching her side with her pants unable to keep quiet now. She was juddering heavily, her weaponized arm swinging aggressively to and fro beside her. She was sprinting across an open landscape, the edges of the massive walkway devoid of any walls or railing; she shivered from the thought of being knocked over, lost in the abyss be-

_Young wielder, think you can escape from me?_

“No, no...” Aseles seethed, her hands clamping onto her keyblade, refusing to let herself be vulnerable. She felt the hot press of many hands grip and yank her hair back and forth, making her skull rattle. The view of the massive sea before the restored bases of the outer walls; the stretch of brick floor sunk to the horizon of where the sunset waited. There, a boy, a young boy was walking away, and....she was trying to reach him-

_You left him alone. How does that make you feel?_

“Get out of my head!” she growled out, jogging weakly with one eye cracked open. The pillars and columns raced passed her, colors of orchid, navy and green Darkness obscuring her view.

_You want to remember._

_Let me give that to you._

_“Keep running.”_ Terra’s armored body flew by her, and reappeared again on the opposite side of her. _“Don’t stop.”_

“Ahh!” she gasped, able to feel the safety of Terra’s spell on her shield her again. However, the sound of a shrilly laugh sounded out, making Aseles’ eyes widen. She shot her head around, and was tossed back from the lavender, neon disk slamming into her keyblade. She stood up and faced the unhooded Ihara, her eyes swelling with rabid, lavender bolts.

“Going somewhere?!” Ihara cackled, and she tossed her disks repeatedly as if indestructible threads were connecting them to her wrists. Aseles blocked her oncoming attacks, but was kicked back when Ihara touched base. Aseles skidded back, and had to roll out of the way to prevent Ihara from kicking her over the edge of the rocky platform they stood on.

“Out of my WAY!” Emerald vines penetrated from behind her, fissures and cracks pierced with thousands of threads and jagged, irate roots. Ihara dodged backwards, but instead of running, Aseles tackled her, and spun her keyblade like a windmill in front of her. The gush of vines swirled and spun out like propeller, and snaked through the air to cut into Ihara’s defenses.

“Don’t think so!” she cried out excitedly, her disks drilling and slicing through her vines like paper. Aseles stayed in her position, and leapt when Ihara struck downward. Aseles was now over her; it was her chance.

“Maga Flora!” she spun full circle in the air, and shot her keyblade upwards to the sky. Ihara’s eyes widened, and she screamed when the vines beneath her thrusted out, and incased her in a stable sphere of green vines. Aseles landed swiftly on tip of the ball, her eyes shooting to Terra who reappeared again, his hand gesturing to her directly.

_“This way.”_ Aseles leapt from her made sphere, grunting heavily from the impact. She swung her keyblade across, the ball that encased Ihara exploding at the command. She screamed out angrily, but Aseles did not stop to count the many swear words ripping out of her damaged form.

_“You have taken heavy damage.”_ Aseles grunted, straining her legs forward with keyblade flowing meagerly in her grasp. Her feet thudded too loudly to conceal herself, but she knew she was almost there, she had to be.

The massive twirling and turning platform guided her trying body forward, unexpectedly slamming against the edge of a turn. She clamped her hands onto the rock wall, trying to regain her breathing. At this rate, she wouldn’t make it back without a serious beating.

_My, my. You have a strong will. I admire that greatly._

“Please n-no...” she skidded to the ground, the throbbing in her head unfolding to painful gashes. She could feel her mind bleeding her thoughts out, a hand continuously cramming sharp needles in their place. She slumped onto the ground, her eyes tearing of the intake.

_You remind me of him. You remind me of Terra._

_“Aseles, stand!”_ She tried to, desperately attempted to, stabbing the head of her keyblade against the ground. Her body flinched, her eyes flickering to stay open. And then....

_“Your comrades are up ahead! You must go to them!”_ She wobbled past Terra, but picked up her pace to enter the dark and last corridor. She stumbled forward, and fell onto the damp ground. Her ears were ringing, and she cringed and shuddered from the millions of maggots crawling and squirming into the gaps of her head. Why wouldn’t this feeling stop....?!

“H-Hey! Over here!” She weakly lifted her head, catching a wavering arm in her direction. She clumsily stood up, keyblade used as a cane to walk her steadily over. Her eyes narrowed to the kneeling man, strands of gray hair perched and swept over and up his head. A pair of treasure eyes scanned her face delicately, a smile of relieved pearls etched on the guy’s face. She had never seen him before-

“Aseles, you’re here.” So how did he know her?

“W-Who are you?” she questioned, but it wasn’t as stern as she thought it was. The man was now standing, looking exhausted and feeble the way his shoulders dropped forward. He was taller than her, around the same height as Dimitri. Her eyes examined his right arm, and she cringed at the infection.

“Yeah, today is not a good day,” the man joked, making her stare at him incredulously.

“How do you know me?” she asked again.

The man’s smile dropped, a grim frown framing his lips, “You must not remember, huh? But, Aseles, right now we have to get out.”

“We?”

He nodded, “My name is Tanner, and I’m Dimitri’s brother.” Her train of thought instantly crashed and toppled at the mention, and it took her another moment to register his words into reason.

“Dimitri’s...brother? But-how??”

The man named Tanner shook his head, his hands curled into fists, “I’ll explain later. I’m afraid saving him is beyond our reach right now. You see the other two cells?” She followed his finger, and stopped at the pair of bodies lying on the ground beside each other, parted by a slab of rock. She rushed over, ignoring her limp and immediately smashed her keyblade against the second cell. The pebbles and spiked shards jumped away at her smashes, giving her way to shuddering and withdrawn Hayner.

“L-Let go,” he croaked, resisting Aseles’ arms from cradling him.

“Hayner! Hayner it’s me!” she urgently replied, the edges of her eyes tearing.

Hayner’s eyes troubled to open, “A-Aseles...?” She was already working on removing the cork of the first elixir in her pocket, and pressed the opening to his lips. Hayner didn’t question, and drank lustfully with the corners of his mouth leaking of the nectar. She waited, and felt the awesome relief wash over her when Hayner’s eyes pried open fully, color emerald encasing his entire body. He stood up easily straight, the bruises, cuts and gashes along his face and arms vanished. He stood proudly and boldly, and swung his keyblade out to reassure he had backup.

“Aseles....I can’t-how did you know I was here?”

“I’ll explain after we get out. Can you cut down...Cut down the other’s guy’s cell!” she winced at the cold wave hitting against her side. Her eyes looked forward to see Terra was now standing beside the sleeping girl’s cell.

_“You must make haste.”_

“Aseles?”

“Do it, Hayner!” she called out rapidly, and bashed her keyblade roughly against the third and last cell. The smoke rose swiftly, and Aseles was kneeling beside the dark-haired girl. Aseles flipped her carefully on her side, and frowned at her famine and battered state.

_“She is vital to your past.”_ Terra warned, but Aseles paid him no mind. She uncorked and fed the girl the second elixir, but she wasn’t awakening.

“Wake up, wake up!” she tried, but the woman was unresponsive. A pair of footsteps approached the front of the cell, Aseles looking over to see Hayner and the one named Tanner supported at his side.

“If you heal me, I’ll be able to carry Ria out,” Tanner informed. Aseles had no time to object, and hurriedly provided him the last elixir. He downed it down in a single gulp, the color of his skin restored to that of a light tan and his infected arm recovered; she hoped she could last until they got out.

“You carry her, and Hayner and I will provide the path for you,” she nodded, moving aside for the man to kneel before Ria. His arms scooped her easily up, Aseles aiding him on setting the girl against his back. His arms hooked underneath her thighs, her arms and front slumped against his muscular back.

“How will we get out?” Hayner asked, his hand gripping her wrist, “Aseles....I- thank you so much-“

“You can thank me _after_ we get out, okay?” she smiled to him, making the blond stare at her.

“Yeah. Of course,” he smiled widely, giving a determined nod.

“We’ll be right behind you,” Tanner stepped forward, the long locks of black and raspberry swaying over his shoulder. His bronze eyes apologetically delved into her, “I’m....sorry for whatever trouble Dimitri has caused you. It was dangerous for you to come here.”

“Then when we get out, you owe me an explanation,” she retorted.

Tanner gave her a good look, but agreed, “A trade then.”

“Let’s get going!” Aseles took off into a run, gesturing the two men to follow.

_“This way.”_ Terra zipped past the dashing team, Tanner’s hands clutching onto his traveler’s legs. Her feet and hands dangled and swung at his movements, but Aseles had to trust him to pay attention fully to Terra. His image came out more frequently, his blurred image startling her; he couldn’t hold the connection on much longer, and in a matter of moments, they could be trapped by the others.

“Damn how long is this?!” Tanner hissed, Aseles and Hayner sprinting on either side of him. He was an athletic man, considering he kept up with them just fine, even with Ria’s weight on him.

_Think you can escape me, Aseles?_

She tried her best to ignore him, but the pain doubled, and it sent her step reeling back. She slowed drastically, her pants coughing out. Her keyblade vanished to put less weight on her, but she was certain it only made things worse.

“Aseles, Aseles get up!” Hayner hands dragged her, colors of dark purple and green swirling and flattening her view. She continued to run, but she was having trouble listening to Terra. His voice grew bottomless and pressing.

_“Keep going, Aseles. Keep going!”_

_Highly unlikely._

_Terra could not save himself._

_You believe he can save you?_

The group approached an open area, boarded with high walls disappearing into the dark sky above. She was trying her best to catch her breath, dousing out the flames harboring in her lungs. Her eyes fixated forward, but she stumbled to a stop with Hayner and Tanner to see someone was blocking their way, with a large sword in hand.

“Dimitri,” Tanner inhaled sharply. Aseles’ keyblade stood readily at her possession, Hayner prepared and erect beside her. He exchanged glances between the two, and put the pieces together that Dimitri was not here to rescue them.

_Show them what you’re made of, chap._

The pair of vicious cyclones bore into her, his dark hair incomparable and superior to the Darkness surrounding the group. His blade was brimming that of shady sapphire, the edges charged for conflict. However, he wasn’t moving, despite the way he was watching them.

“Dimitri, move!” Aseles commanded, resisting the urge to wince at the massive clutch on her head. He did not, instead walked forward, and stood right in front of them two yards away.

“I don’t like this,” Hayner gritted his teeth, keyblade tight in his palm.

“Dimitri,” Tanner bellowed, taking the stance right beside Aseles’ left, “Move.”

“I want to talk to you,” Dimitri announced, his eyes unfaltering to Aseles.

_“You must continue moving!”_ Terra’s armored body vapored beside Dimitri’s left, then burst to his right, _“You must not stop! Do not deter from the path!”_

“There is nothing to talk about!” Aseles silently agreed, jaw clenched uncomfortably beneath her skin, “I trusted you once, and you ruined it!”

“Dimitri, step aside, we don’t have time to lecture you!” Tanner added severely.

Still, Dimitri ignored him, his eyes keen on looking to her again, “Aseles.....”

“D-Dimitri, move!” Aseles urged, the edges of her eyes now streaming, from the pain carving into her skull, and the emerging memories of him.

“Leaving so soon?” The group whirled their heads behind, the sounds of scraping metal sliding each other. The ringing thrived inside Aseles’ ears unwillingly, but no other senses compared to her sight watching Chad approaching. His attached blades shined along his forearms, his legs swaying in an upbeat step. His golden, possessed eyes regarded the group, then looked smugly to Dimitri.

“Good work. Now let’s show them who’s boss,” Chad chimed eagerly, giggling.

“Aseles....I’m sorry,” Dimitri lifted his blade, Aseles shooting her eyes to him and Hayner glaring to Chad. Tanner shared his stare with Aseles, the two readily prepared for his attack.

“Get ready!” Tanner shouted, and both foes charged. And yet, nothing hit them when the two disappeared. A loud clang erupted from behind them, Hayner backing up from the abrupt gale blowing in front of him. Dimitri’s back was facing them, his blade having connected and halted Chad’s oncoming blades.

“Bloke! What are you doing?!” Chad growled out.

Dimitri withheld his ground, and tossed Chad back, “Go!” Aseles’ eyes widened, Tanner too caught off-guard of Dimitri’s sudden and charitable defense.

“Dimitri!” Tanner gasped in.

His hazel eyes gripped the group, lastly burying into Aseles’, “Damn it, you’re going to make me say it twice, after all.”

“D-Dimitri?” she shuddered, her hand shaking the keyblade in her possession.

His eyes softened, but were resolute, “I’ll go...wherever you go.” A blooming flower radiated within her chest, and she tried everything in her might to think of a way to take him with them, to try to formulate the words that so wanted to flourish out of her. But she couldn’t say it, she didn’t know what they were. But she knew they were important, and somehow, someway...she knew Dimitri felt it too. She saw it in his face and she was afraid that was going to be the last time he looked at her like that.

“Go, you need to go!” Dimitri tore his glance painfully away, and was once again preoccupied with his fighting foe. His blade extended and sparked, Chad’s eyes glaring to him. Dimitri glowered back in defiance, and slammed his blade hurriedly against Chad.

“Don’t you let me down!” Aseles cried out, and she shot her eyes away from his distinguishable figure. She broke away into a run, dragging Tanner’s arm with her. Hayner didn’t hesitate to follow behind, but he didn’t know how to console her flowing tears either. She looked over briefly to see that Tanner too held a stone face, and was preventing from his full emotion to override the sense of urgency to escape.

They ran without interruption this time, Aseles’ pained chest principal to that of the ghastly gloom sweeping over them. Terra’s figure was now just a fog, and frequently popped out to reassure her that they were going in the right direction.

_“You will see him again.”_ Her mouth quivered, and she let out one single sob before silencing herself. _“The exit is up ahead_ - _“_ Terra’s image sanded and fell, her feet kicking past it as they appeared in the opened entrance of the cavern.

“The...stairs,” Tanner struggled to breathe, Hayner and Aseles having to help him with Ria’s weighted, slumped body against his shaking back. All three kept their pained, steady steps to climb up. They reached the top, the barren wasteland of rock and dirt the only thing seen for miles on end.

Hayner dropped to his knees, arms crossing in front of his chest to help level his breathing. Aseles too was struggling to catch her needed air, but instead reached into her pocket, and pulled out their only method of transportation out.

“We need to hold onto each other,” Aseles nodded hurriedly, picking Hayner up and standing beside Tanner. She pulled out Tanner’s trembling hand, and latched it with the Star Shard, pulling his fingers over it tightly. She then cupped Hayner’s hand on top of his, and wrapped both of her hands on the top and bottom to enclose their connection.

“What do we do?” Hayner inhaled in deep waves.

“Hold on tight,” Aseles instructed, and lifted their hands up. The gaps of their fingers began to radiate out with a glow. The galaxy within the Star Shard spun in a rapid rate, “Take us back...to our friends!” The magic collected the trio into a compounded barrier, the light engulfing their view. Aseles felt the stretch of her limbs and feet, her toes now only inches off the-

CLINK!

Aseles reeled in the air agonizingly, and she hit the floor with a smashing thud. The dirt suffocated her mouth, the rush of blood running to her nose and eyes. She shivered to make herself sit up, but was only able to roll herself on her back. She groaned, and gasped painfully as her eyes squinted to the bulb of light rocketing back and forth along the sky, and cutting up into the dark clouds.

The edge of her mouth brimmed red, and her trembling hand lifted poorly in front of her. She raised it unsteadily to the sky, and felt the weighty unfairness that consumed her now. She was now alone, the black ash raining along her body, the dark wisps cradling her face and throat. She was so close....she was so close to escaping.

_You are my vessel._

She winced with a tearing sob, rolling onto her side like a crippled animal shot in the legs. The embedded, charring revelation of her fate was sinking into her consciousness, her wet eyes breaking the dark ground into crystallized obsidians rocks. Was this the end?

_He groaned heavily as he coughed, pulling himself forward as best as he could_.

_He slightly laughed to himself, pressing his forehead against the ground._

_“Where do you think you’re going, Dimitri?”_

Was this how it was going to end?

“G-Get up...” Aseles begged, gritting her teeth tightly. “D-Dimitri...get up!”

_Dimitri swiftly shot his eyes up, that golden left eye piercing through him. He chuckled lightly at Chad, but shouted as he felt himself being kicked on the chest._

_“H-Hey....Boots,” Dimitri huffed out._

“D-Dimitri, please....p-lease get up!” she croaked sorely, her hands digging and clawing into the ground.

_“You betrayed us,” Chad replied flatly. His stretched out his hand forward, looming it over Dimitri’s face. Dimitri looked back up at him with an eye cracked open._

_“Ordered to kill me huh?” Dimitri scoffed. “You’re...not going to win friend of the year like that.”_

_Chad’s hand darkened violently, “I have come to rid of your existence.”_

_“Ya know...it really sucks....”_

“Dimitri....” she mouthed, begged, yanked at his morality. She kneeled, her body pulsing out of that of a dying heart. She could feel every bone in her body was trying to fight it, but she couldn’t. She couldn’t anymore. She had....to....

_“Dying?” Chad probed firmly._

_Dimitri shook his head, huffing out, “No....betraying her. Betraying my real friend...”_

_Chad’s fingers cracked, his eye glaring at Dimitri, “We are friends....”_

_Dimitri spat back, “You are not...my friend. You lost.”_

A figure in the distance began to close in, and Aseles stabbed her keyblade to the ground, pulling herself up to her feet. She gritted her teeth, feeling the same fire, the same blaze as before riding along her arms and legs. She felt it at the ends of her fingers, remembered the way Dimitri held out her arm.

_“You’re about to die, and you tell me I lost?” Chad sneered, unamused._

_“Yes....because in the end,” Dimitri breathed out, his shining blade gripped tightly in his palm, “I didn’t lose myself in the end.” The hand hovering over him sparkled roughly as Chad lifted it higher._

_“Goodbye, Dimitri Larkin.”_

_Dimitri smiled, “See you later....Asel-“_

“Aseles....” Her tearing eyes spotted the blurred, old man advancing to her, and stopped a few yards away. His arms were kept neatly behind his back, his cloak whipping and dancing to the left. His constricted eyes cemented into hers, but what she lacked in fear, she filled with anger.

Her keyblade shook in her hands, but she no longer had the strength to oppose his mindful games. She knew the consequences of coming here, but whatever fate awaited her, she was not ready for it.

His sinister grin stretched that of a mile, clayed on his face. He was flawless and poised in every way, but she knew...she knew he was no better than that of an honorable soldier. His presence scared her, it physically and mentally terrified her.

“This...is all...your fault!” Aseles sobbed out, teeth clamped tightly after. She was trying her best to suppress the darkening anger within, but she could see it beginning to flourish at her fingertips, and rise up along her arms.

She was angry.

“My dear, I merely laid the chessboard down,” Xehanort replied casually, holding his hand out to her. The roaring fire with her increased. “You played the pieces. You were the pawn that wielded herself into knight. How you tried so hard to protect your kingdom, your kings and queens. But, at the expense of their safety, you neglected to save yourself.”

“Shut up!” Aseles hollered angrily, the tears flying hotly out. She lifted her keyblade, and pointed it straight to him, “You ruined their lives, you ruined my friends’ lives, and you ruined mine! You meddled into things that were never yours; you took and you took, you greedy bastard!”

The elder man quirked a smirk, a chuckle ringing out, “No, I’m afraid you’re mistaken. Everything and everyone....already belonged to me.” Aseles’ entire body flamed in dark wisps, and she yelled out angrily, glaring to the elder, laughing man.

He spread his arms out at his sides, eyes locked onto her, “You set out to save your friends, but what did it cost you??” Aseles sprinted to a charge, the Darkness inside her fully charged and absolute. It was familiar. It was....Dimitri’s Darkness, she knew it anywhere. They were...they were in this, together. She could feel it!

“I will save my friends no matter what it takes!” she slammed her keyblade repeatedly against Xehanort, the man combatting with his own. It was ebony in color, with silver overtone to accent the sharp bases and edges. The head curved over like that of a waterfall, with the eye of a possessed creature laid in the center. A horned animal connected the handle and body together, the rims glowing with bright lavender.

“That is your mistake!” He swung his keyblade suddenly erratically, targeting Aseles like prey. Aseles deflected and rebounded to block, her feet leaping her back to avoid the oncoming slices and swings. However, the old man kept excellent pace, and his keyblade caught hers in the crossfire, and was now skidding her feet as if they were no longer weighted to the ground. She cried out sharply, and burst her entire body with the navy Darkness, kicking Xehanort away. He regained momentum, and clashed against her again.

“You believed you had control of your fate?” Xehanort abruptly whipped in front of her, catching her wide eyes, “When in fact, you played yourself neatly into my hands!”

Aseles met the air, her body spinning in differently directions until she hit the ground. She rolled to a stop, but rolled herself out of the way in time, Xehanort’s keyblade missing her. She slammed her keyblade overhead, her trembling body preventing herself from kneeling before him.

His curved eyes darted down to her, his grin ever so wide, “Darkness is the only ability you have at your disposal.”

“Get off!” Aseles snarled, swiping across to strike him. Xehanort leapt back, but he did not prepare his keyblade out when she ran straight for him. His hand stretched out, digits bloomed out like a flytrap, “But it is also...your downfall.”

A beam of Darkness lurched out of his gloved palm, but Aseles swiftly glided to the side, and evaded the attack. He was open, and she leapt upwards, and swung her keyblade downward-

“NGH!” Aseles’ grunted loudly, her mouth baring open with back hunched. Her chest coughed out noiselessly, her eyes fluttering to look down at his free hand, the tips of his fingers having dug into her dress. The fabric singed at the contact, and her quaking body shuddered with a moaning shriek when her body leveled another inch down. The middle of all of his fingers were inside her now, her keyblade clattering to the floor at his feet. She was....going to throw up. She could feel...his Darkness sinking, flowing inside of her.

 

Her muscles twitched and cracked, the edges of her mouth running like black waterfalls. Her opened eyes quavered, frail to his enslaving orbs.

 

He leaned his face in, his breath encircling around her nose and eyes, “Do you feel the richness? The power, the invincibility?”

 

 

She tried to cry out, but her arms were stoned and spread, her fingers unable to grip at his wrist to pull him out. He dug deeper, and her eyes shut, her lips shaking at a magnitude that a detector could not read. He was inside her, and she couldn’t scream. She couldn’t stop him.

 

 

His fluid Darkness overtook her, her legs and arms twitching of the poison smothering her.

 

 

 

Her eyes were growing heavy...she couldn’t stay awake.

 

 

The Darkness drilled into her repeatedly, like that of tar and gasoline. She tried to choke to make noise, but all that dripped out were streams of black and purple, her body twitching to relive its final moments of her pausing heart.

 

 

She couldn’t stop him. She couldn’t stop him.

 

She never stood a chance against him.

 

 

 

“Young wielder, your heart is strong,” Xehanort reached his free hand out, lifting her lifeless eyes to him, his thumb stroking her slacked jaw, “But your body...is now mine.”

 

SORA’S POV:

His cobalt eyes looked upon the setting horizon of red and orange, his lips slightly frowning as his hands rested on his knees. His back slightly hunched as he sighed, his chest dropping of the heavy weight of his worries. He rested his elbows on his knees, pressing his hands onto his face and rubbing it roughly, away from the awing view of the Ravine.

If only he...changed things. If only he changed the way he approached her...

Maybe....

“Sora.” Sora lifted his eyes to look at the left, seeing Axel approaching from the trail of the Bailey. He was carrying two popsicles in his hand, grabbing one and offering it to Sora. Sora inspected it, then up at Axel, smiling mildly as he took the generous offer.

“Mind if I sit?” Sora shook his head, and Axel was quick to swing his legs over the step he was standing on. He bent one leg up with the bottom of his foot resting on the last step. He munched peacefully as Sora looked back forward again, looking at the sky as he nibbled on his own treat, bringing a feeling of an unknown nostalgia.

“Hey, Sora, bet you don’t know why the sun sets red,” Axel stated.

“Hmm?” Sora blinked, looking toward Axel before regarding the sunset, “...I’ve...never really thought about it. Do you know?”

Axel smiled, “You see, light is made up of lots of colors, and out of all those colors, red is the one that travels the farthest.”

“Light is made from a lot of colors....” Sora repeated, sighing solemnly as he lowered his treat. Axel looked toward him. “...Was it my fault she left?” Axel exhaled gently, finishing his popsicle before stuffing the wooden stick in his pocket.

“No...I don’t think she left...because of you,” the redhead answered.

“Why do you say that?” Sora doubted.

Axel dropping his bent knee down and instead rested his hands on his thighs, “Aseles was missing some things....and she wanted to go look for them. The longer she stayed here...”

“Will...she come back?” Sora asked, but it was mostly out loud to himself.

“I would like it...if she did...”

Sora nodded once, “Yeah...I would like to see her, too.”

“Then we’ll see her again. She’s not one to keep someone waiting,” Axel hummed. He stood up, his hands dusting off his pants. “C’mon, the gummi ship is waiting- WHOA.” Sora lifted his head, but he too erected himself up, and stared at the approaching and sweeping ray of Light Axel was staring at in the sky. It fumbled and spun in different directions before pinpointing downward, and crashing into an area of the Crystal Fissure. The sound of something splashing and cracking erupted.

“C’mon!” Sora advised and took off into a run, Axel right behind him. They ran into the pathway leading down to the Fountain Courts, Sora able to hear voices radiating from the center. Once he got to the bridge, his eyes immediately recognized Hayner.

“Hayner!” Sora leapt down from the bridge, and rushed over. Hayner coughed and squeezed his shirt dry, but he did not push Sora away from embracing him. The two parted, Sora absolutely relieved to see him. After what they had told him-

“Ugh...ow.” Sora’s eyes darted to the man sitting up on the wet floor, his gray hair and bright eyes unrecognizable to Sora. Then, beside him was a woman who was regaining her senses, her hands reaching up to push her long hair away from her face.

“Who are they? Wait...where’s Aseles?” Sora quickly cut himself off, eying Hayner. However, it didn’t please him to see Hayner’s smile drop. Aseles had to have saved them, right?

“Oh no...” His friend kneeled, Sora and Axel watching him pick up a broken and vacant star-shaped crystal. A whole section was missing. “She...She got pulled....I don’t know where we were-“

“She was with you?” Axel inquired further. Hayner nodded, the three now regarding the standing individual who was helping the woman up to her feet.

She staggered on her feet, her black-mixed hair falling straight down to one side of her face. Her eyes began to flicker, but her mouth already demanded with clear words.

“Aseles....W-Where is Aseles....?”

“Ria....Ria,” the unnamed man gripped her arms, trying to bring her back to full stability.

She was left stunned in his grip, her eyes scanning his face meticulously, “Tan-ner?”

“Yes...it’s me,” Tanner gave a weak smile. “Ria...you have to lis-“

“Where is Aseles?!” Ria demanded out, her eyes cutting away from the male and now targeting the others. Hayner curled his lips back, Sora and Axel exchanging glances, then cutting to both the blond and gray-haired men.

“Where is she?!” Sora persisted. “Tell us!”

The one named Tanner shook her once, his expression paling of any color, “Aseles....she saved us, but she got stuck-“ The woman named Ria clamped her hands to her mouth, a quavering sob possessing her body. It sharply curled into that of a plea, Hayner and Sora taking a step back from her alarmed, terrified demeanor.

Her hands slammed onto Tanner’s arms, her hair flying to and fro, “No no! Oh please.....no!”

“R-Ria...I’m SO sorry-“ Tanner tried. Sora continued to stare, watch, process all he could, but what came out next dropped all emotion into his feet, and made him remain there. No. _No._

“Why?! Why did we leave her?!” The woman cried out helplessly, the tears and water of the fountain trickling down her face, “My sister! We left my sister behind!!!”


	26. Black Knight

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Gosh. I'm feeling a lot of things right now. Good? Bad? I'm not entirely sure, but we made it here.
> 
> I want to thank a ton of people, for the people who have stuck with me since the Quizilla days, to the new readers, to the readers who think any of this was worth it. Just thank you, thank you so much. 
> 
> I would like to thank Adrianne (Ria), RoadtoDusk, J0hnny0hm, SealingXStar, amartine, SleepingMemories, behindmyicyblueeyes, Chibiprincess, StarShaphFire, SakamotoItoe and MySilentNight (most of these are from Quizilla, we’re old bro). Your contributions to the story and/or support were phenomenal to me, and I thank you for helping me get this far before, and this far again. Without this wonderful fandom, I'm not sure where I would exactly be right now, and-gosh I'm crying. Great.
> 
> Again, thank you so much everyone. Nothing can compare to your kindness, nothing will ever compare to this series, and honestly, I don’t even know what’s in store in the future. Aseles’ story will never end...because it will always be here to reread again and again. She will always be a part of me, and now she's a part of you. 
> 
> Take care guys. Until then.
> 
> Sincerely and Always,
> 
> Leslie

She was sitting on the bridge, consecutively, repeatedly for the past couple of days. She contemplated on what she could do, on what she had to avoid to reach the downpour of sadness webbing, intertwining in her thoughts. Her dreams satiated nothing but broken sounds and wings, of an everlasting guilt she would never be able to get rid of on her own. She didn’t know…how to get that happiness back. She was close.

Ria was so close.

To reuniting with Aseles...the only treasure she had left in these worlds.

Her eyes glanced down to the picture in her palms; it was torn in half, found at edge of the stone barrier of the fountain she landed in those days ago. It was heavily damaged from the water, but also from the cracked sparks of the Star Shard they had used to get here. She remembered the sound of cracking glass, and the agonized scream that grew distant from their elevating height. It was Aseles’ scream…She must’ve had this picture in her pocket, before…

“I remember, when we took this picture,” Ria smiled weakly. The man beside her listened patiently, his bronze eyes watchful. “It was…in the Castle Town. She had longer hair than I did, in those days.”

“Even though you weren’t directly related,” Tanner drew out softly, his medium locks fluttering from the breeze of the tunnel behind, “I know you loved her very much.”

The flirtatious boy grew up to be a man she hardly recognized when she saw him; his right arm had taken heavy damage, and was barely healing. It rested on a sling, and he cradled it with a tender ambiance. His clothes had been changed for that of a V-shirt, with jeans and a pair of old tennis shoes he had been provided with temporarily.

“Ten years…” Ria exhaled out, her lips pressing onto each other before parting, “Ten years I searched for her. I had no idea where she was. One day….she was with me, and the next…no one remembered her.”

Her eyes turned, catching Tanner’s profile, “How did you remember?” The man’s jaw and broad shoulders tensed, his eyes scanning along the rising mist of the Fountain Courts.

“Dimitri helped me remember,” the man exhaled shakily, his eyes glimmering like the running water beneath his hanging feet. “I don’t think…he meant to do it, but when we combatted, when I tried to make him see the error of his ways, he somehow- the memories came back to me in some way.” His glance wavered along the ground, unable to lock in a specific place.

Ria frowned, and she pressed a hand on the top of his shoulder, “Do you think…”

“No- Dimitri is out there. I just….have to….f-find him,” he shut his eyes, rubbing them with his knuckles briefly.

She brushed his arm tenderly, accepting and allowing Tanner of time of peace. They both knew he had dug himself into this circumstance, but she didn’t question why Dimitri did what he did. She fairly knew Dimitri had a deep devotion to Aseles, something indescribable that not even Ansem the Wise could not curtain. Emotion was the one aspect of knowledge that old man could ever grasp. Who did he think he was, trying to pose and identity himself as Aseles’ biological father?

She rubbed the singed picture between her fingers, her eyes skimming along the water for some answer, some hint that everything was going to be alright. That Aseles would be back. That maybe even Dimitri was…here to give them some indication of her whereabouts.

“Ria....I’m really sorry about everything. From the very beginning,” Tanner withdrew his fingers one by one, curling his hands into a fist, turning his attention forward. “Maybe if we hadn’t been so hard on him…”

“Maybe if I had been more defensive for her to be with him,” Ria countered, the two sharing a weak smile.

“Guess we’re both at fault with this…”

“Perhaps we are all to blame for how things progressed.” The wind kissed and swayed the duo’s hair, the chill of doubt grappling at Ria’s spine. No, Aseles was going to be okay. She had to be okay. She had to…..

“Then, let’s go find them.”

“Together?”

“Together.”

 

SORA’S POV:

He fixed the bed as best as he could, but with trembling fingers such a chore wasn’t easily accomplishable. His azure eyes skimmed the room one last time, refusing to feel any anger with his last minutes being here. He headed out of the room and appeared in the deserted hallway. The rooms were held open and all clear, but then his eyes lingered to that of the closed door.

Sora stood in front of the wooden surface, and he reached slowly, delicately rimming the entire doorknob with his palm. He turned the knob, and closed his eyes. He entered, and opened them. No one was in here.

He looked to the bed, having been left the way it was on Aseles’ last use of it. He walked to the end of the bed, observing the tossed clothes she had been debating on, and the dresser’s drawers slightly sticking out from her haste. The window to the room had been left closed, her scent of wet flowers preserved.

He swiftly moved his way out of the room, closed the door, and reached the kitchen downstairs. The door leading outside was left ajar of his arrival, and there he saw the arc of people already waiting for him; Leon stood at the center, Riku, Mickey and Axel stationed at his right, with Kairi, Hayner and Raine at his left.

Leon motioned Sora over, “You ready?”

Sora nodded, walking down the steps, “Yeah.”

“You have everything?” Riku asked, catching his friend’s attention. Sora regarded him for a moment, and again acknowledged understanding with a nod; he knew they might not come back for a while.

It had taken Sora a bit of time to forgive Riku, but in the end, they shared the same goal: to stop Xehanort, and bring Aseles back. What had happened in the past passed, but Sora still questioned why they had waited so long to tell them such grave news. Especially King Mickey, and Yen Sid; if they had wanted Aseles to stay safe, why didn’t they tell her the truth in the first place?

“We’re headed to the Postern?” Sora asked, shaking whatever doubts he had left; they were on a mission now.

“From there, we’ll head to Yen Sid’s,” Mickey added next. “After we drop by Twilight Town.”

“Yeah, I would like to see Pence and Olette, before I go with you guys,” he responded with a reassuring smile.

“Heh, yeah of course,” Sora smiled back. “Axel, why are you tagging along?”

The redhead hummed briefly, his head tilting down to look at Sora judgingly, “That’s a dumb question to ask.” Axel remained quiet since the failed coup occurred, fairly compared to that of Leon’s stone exterior. The older man hardly left the U.S.S., and if not there, he was in Merlin’s Study, reading on material he thought he could benefit from. What answers was he looking for? Sora wasn’t sure himself, but a fact remained that maybe Leon was merely distracting himself while he still processed Aseles’ absence.

“He’s also going on my behalf,” Leon announced, giving Axel a hard look, “Don’t let me down.”

“I won’t,” Axel solidified with a stern stare.

A pair of soft footsteps caught all eyes to turn into the direction behind. Sora’s sky eyes observed, and they froze to crystals when he saw a young boy was approaching them. Stan made his way over, hands clutched behind him timidly. He regarded all of them swiftly, frowned to Raine who dared not to look at him before they landed to Leon.

“What is it, Stan?” Leon addressed him first, Hayner and Kairi parting the way to let him by.

Stan’s dark eyes rose to look at Leon properly, but then they motioned over to Sora. The brunette faced him directly, and watched Stan stand in front of him. He had grown taller from the last time he had seen him, but as Sora searched his face, there was nothing but a sense of hurt reappearing. He could see Aseles had left a mark on him.

“Are you going to bring Aseles back?” he asked. Sora opened his mouth, but it closed a second after. He placed his hands on Stan’s shoulder, giving them a firm squeeze. Stan tried again, mustering the words out of his straining throat, “She’s going to come back, right?”

Sora swallowed roughly, but he smiled as best as he could, “Yes....we’ll bring her back. She’s going to come back.” Stan lurched forward, and hugged Sora, burying his face into his chest. Sora shut his eyes, his chest quaking uneasily. He heard Stan sniff gently, and part away to rub his wet eyes off.

“Please...bring her back,” Stan asked softly, his chest heaving slightly.

“I will, I promise,” Sora nodded slowly, gritting his teeth beneath his shut lips. Leon paced forward, but Sora didn’t have to ask. The two hugged tightly, and parted so Leon could look at him properly.

Leon held the wielder’s shoulders, “We’ll be here, cheering you on. The fate of the worlds is in your hands. Be careful....everyone.”

“We’ll win,” Sora replied firmly, and then turned his attention to the group of followers around. “Is everyone ready?”

They nodded, and followed to close The Keyblade War at its final act.

 

 

 

 

**~::FIVE YEARS LATER::~**

 

 

 

 

It was tiring. It was so damn tiring going back and forth. But he was finally here, back home. The odd and unsettling nostalgia of it all.

His elbows were stricken with pink and brown, bare with only his right hand gloved and bandaged. His bangs were a bit longer, the strands on his head still a mess but framing a much mature and sharp face. His hazel eyes settled to that of a cool tide, colors of green and brown mixed in harmony. The left side of his jaw harbored a deep cut that ran up a curve, ending at the edge of his eye. On the same side, his left arm held past damage, his left pinky missing and a scar reflecting that of a carved branch on his skin.

He continued his walk through the market of warriors and buyers, his dark boots protecting his feet from the hot, sandy ground. He knew the back of his shirt-hoodie was covered in sweat, but it might be also due to the fact he was carrying his food back to his old, cramped place. He was never a person to stay stationary in a world, but he made the exception that he wasn’t having any luck in his search.

He wasn’t sure how he got out of the Underworld from so long ago, but thank the gods of Olympus that he was able to. After having blocked and knocked Chad back, he ran into the dark portal that emerged beside him, and rolled into it for safety; no doubt conjured as a desperate attempt from his remaining Darkness. He had not seen Chad since, but that was not on his main priority.

He was transported out of the hell, and when he was finally able to command himself a stolen gummi ship from some poor sap in Traverse Town, he came back to find the entire world barren of any Darkness. How long had it been? He wasn’t sure, at least a month but the world was reverted back to normal.

But Aseles’ whereabouts were missing. She was nowhere in sight.

He searched, and he searched, to points of running out of fuel and making desperate stops in places he did not know harbored fuel for his transportation. He dodged familiar faces, and kept himself hidden in shadows and tall bushes to evade anyone who might be able to recognize him; for all he knew, people thought he was dead, but he would rather not taking any chances of anyone getting in the way of his newfound motivation.

He owed her, Dimitri owed her all the answers she was looking for. He just....he knew it was stupid to never have done it in the first place. So many lies, and when he realized his mistakes...it was too late to tell her anything. He dreamt he did every now and then, but was met with utter disappointment when he found himself lying on the floor of the stolen ship.

The sword on his back clanked and the chains of his pants rung with every step, hot to the touch from the scorching sun of Thebes. Despite the events that transpired among the world, it was back to some of the glory it once had before. The citizens and people were brought back from Traverse Town, but not all. Even the mighty Hercules made extra precautions of the perimeters of the town, and with the help of some of the gods and other reemerging keybearers, the world hadn’t faced a catastrophe since then.

He made it to the main square, sitting himself in the shade on the floor by the statue of demi-god savior. He fixed his blade behind him, and pulled the bag he had filled from the stalls onto his lap. He unknotted the rope skillfully with a finger, and reached in to cup an apple. He rubbed it clean and began to take large bites off, reaching the core in a matter of a minute. He tossed it aside with little thought, his mind preoccupied to inspect the crowds in front of him.

Where could she be? Where else could Aseles be?

She wasn’t dead, he knew that; he still felt some sort of Light inside of him, but he failed to make a location of where it was coming from. It was as if it lingered in the air around him, distorting his sense of direction and time. Was it his mind playing tricks on him, disguising the hard reality he did not want to accept?

Five years, and even after her disappearance and Xehanort’s defeat, her whereabouts were unknown. He couldn’t be the only one looking for him.

His head rested back, eyes closing to relapse his quick and discreet visit to Radiant Garden. He remembered the hidden pathways and entrances of the buildings but by the way Leon carried himself, he was certain he and the Committee had been unable to find her. He waited anxiously for a whole two months there until the wielder Sora showed up, but what he talked to Leon in the Market Place proved to him that Aseles was nothing but a ghost now.

_“We fought the vessels, but Aseles wasn’t one of them,” Sora sighed dejectedly. “After the battle ended, even Ax-…I mean Lea went to go find her, but he found nothing.”_

_Leon’s eyes defined concern, “If she wasn’t, then where is she?”_

“I don’t know, maybe she decided to take a vacation,” Dimitri rolled his eyes, tossing his second apple core over his shoulder. It plopped into the fountain nearby, and he took out an orange, peeling it impatiently. “Maybe she realized how annoying and unbearable she was, and did us all a favor? Yeah, maybe that’s it!” He scoffed angrily, splattering the skin of the fruit against the wall at his left.

She was such a fool, she was such a fool for following him. So....why did the fact that she _did_ follow him make him...... _feel_ all of _this_ inside? He never doubted, he never questioned, he never second-guessed, but with her-

Did he ruin her life? Had he led her into a place she could never be recovered from? Did he kiss her too much, not kiss her enough? Did he make too many bad jokes, did he insult or humiliate her too far? He wasn’t sure, and how he hated it all!

“Maybe….she really is dead,” he grumbled sourly, feeling a minor burn beneath his closed eyelids.

“But you don’t think that, do you?” Dimitri bolted himself to his feet hurriedly, dropping the sack of food onto the ground. Tw oranges rolled out, one curving along the ground before coming to a stop. Dimitri snatched the handle of his blade tightly, eying the cloaked and concealed figure in the shadow of the alleyway. Dimitri vigilantly inspected the man’s face kept in the shadow of the hood. He lifted his blade enough to reveal the steel, glowing with a dark, navy radiance along the edge. The cloaked man was unfazed, and even took a step forward to present half of his body in the sunlight.

“The last time someone approached me from the shadows,” Dimitri narrowed his eyes, “Ended up being a nutcase.”

“I’m not here for a fight, Dimitri,” the man replied, standing a bit shorter than him, but not by a lot.

“You’re about to get one if you don’t tell me who you are,” he deflected sternly, storming eyes brewing with poison.

“You wish to save her?” Dimitri fixed his sight on the man, knuckles whitening from the strain. “You wish to save Aseles?”

“How do you know her? How do you know where she is?” Dimitri defended his stance, but he had not drawn his sword out fully. He was so stupidly interested, getting him annoyed of how easily he put his guard down.

The cloaked man turned his back to Dimitri, and at the end of the alleyway, a black portal opened at the extension of the man’s palm. Dimitri’s tight hold of his weapon ceased, both arms now slack at his sides. The mysterious individual stopped at the entrance, Dimitri unaware of his feet moving him closer. He could feel…the Light. The Light inside the portal was calling…to him.

“She has a chance to get everything back, to remember what was taken from her. She’s been waiting for you this whole time, Dimitri. Aseles has been waiting.” The man slightly turned his head to Dimitri, “Ready for your redemption, black knight?” The man hastily strode into the wall, and was gone without an answer.

Dimitri was all alone now, his eyes slightly glittering from the colors swirling of many mixed emotions. He could hear the sounds of the civilians behind him haze and deafen, the sack of food he had bought picked up and gone by some hungry thieves around the bend. His skin tingled of the familiar Light protruding, beckoning to him from within the dark abyss offered to him. Could it be….could it be?

He blinked once, twice, drawing his body nearer to the magical gateway. Light consumed his view, but even with shut eyes Dimitri was trusting in his step, guiding himself with the melody calling, singing to him.

 

 

 

_She is waiting for you....._

 

 

 

Grass licked along his boots and ankles as he made his way along the vast terrain of grass, the twilight sky sparkling with thousands of stars; they swirled and curved like waves. He did not feel threatened in this place, and instead took in the view of the stretching sky, and the miles of growing weeds, plains and flowers. Finally, he reached the end of the pathway, the grass unexpectedly cut off; the land morphed into white-coated marble, sections of the ground missing the more his eyes traveled. A large castle was in the distance, towers perching to touch the sky and a staircase that looked brand new.

 

_You know I will always be with you, Aseles. No matter where you go, I will always find you._

 

Dimitri reached the first step, his eyes marginally wide to inspect the cloaked figure waiting for him at the doorstep.

 

Did he dare?

 

_They say you just have to accept your fate, but I won’t make you do that._

 

He began to climb.

 

_Even though we’ll be apart, we will always find each other._

 

His breaths grew heavier, stronger, bolder. He was halfway, past halfway, reaching the top.

 

_You are who you are....and no one can ever change that._

 

The white ash picked up along his heels, keeping his stare straight ahead.

 

_I will always love you…no matter what._

 

The ambiguous figure stepped aside, gesturing toward the opening, heavy doors behind him, “Castle Oblivion awaits you.”

Dimitri narrowed his eyes, and motioned his feet forward, knowing, feeling, embracing that nothing was going to be the same; things were going to change. He was going to change. He was going to change things…Dimitri Larkin was going to change himself to save her.

 

He owed it to her. He owed her after everything she had been through.

 

He entered.

 

 

He was inside.

 

 

 

He was here.

 

 

 

 

She….was here.

 

 

 

 

 

He could feel it.

 

 

 

 

 

 

The doors closed behind him.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

“A-Aseles?”

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

END.


End file.
